BRIAN RICE has called for one final push from his players as they enter the final quarter of their League One campaign.

The Wasps manager is determined not to allow complacency to creep in as they chase down a chance to claim the second promotion spot this season.

Alloa currently sit in third place following their comfortable victory over League One strugglers Clyde on Saturday.

But Rice has highlighted the importance of remaining focused for the final seven games of the season, which start with a trip to bottom side Peterhead next Saturday.

He said: "It's a really crucial period of the season, the last quarter.

"We've started it pretty well and we're getting boys back from injury.

"It's crucial that we maintain momentum and don't take our eye off the ball and get complacent because we've had a couple of wins.

"The next game is always the most important.

"It doesn't matter what is happening elsewhere. We can only affect what is happening here at Alloa so we've got to concentrate, prepare properly for a difficult away trip to Peterhead next week, and after that just keep going."

The Alloa gaffer is refusing to think about potential matchups in the playoffs and acknowledges that it is still all to play for as the season draws to a dramatic close.

He added: "We're all aiming for the same thing.

"Nothing is cut and dry here, there are teams in this fighting and there are seven tough games still to go."

Continuity was key against Clyde as Rice kept the same starting 11 from the previous victory over FC Edinburgh and was rewarded with an early goal from Ross MacIver.

The hosts controlled the game well, playing some neat football at times as Clyde struggled to deal with Alloa's quality from the wings.

After the game, Rice said: "It was a good performance, I thought that we started the game really well and scored a really good first goal and played some good stuff.

"But, like I said last week, Clyde are fighting to stay in this league, they don't make it easy.

"At half-time, I said that we've got to keep our concentration levels and we lost it for five minutes and they scored a poor goal from our perspective.

"But we showed great character to go and win the game."

Rice was also full of praise for Michael Doyle after the game. Playing as a wing-back on Saturday, Doyle proved to be a problem for the Clyde backline all afternoon.

Rice said: "I think Michael Doyle has energy, he has enthusiasm, he plays with a smile on his face and he is up and down the pitch.

"People keep saying to me that his quality isn't great, if I have something to say to them it is that he gives me everything he's got, he wears his heart on his sleeve and he has been a real team player, and that will do for me.

With two consecutive wins the Wasps have climbed to third in the table, but only two points separate them from FC Edinburgh in fifth.

It has been a fairly encouraging period for the Wasps under Rice, who took the reins following Barry Ferguson's departure in February 2022.

Reflecting on his time at the club so far, Rice was keen to highlight the improvements made this season.

He said: "When you come into a football club, my idea is that it's got to be better once you leave it.

"We finished with 44 points last year and we're on 48 now with seven games still to go.

"I think we've improved this year in a really good league, and we want to keep improving and keep pushing to see if we can get into the playoffs.

"Nothing is guaranteed in this league, there is a lot of difficult games, but we're heading in the right direction."