Ayr United boss Lee Bullen says there's room for improvement after seeing his team bring the first quarter of their Championship season to a close with a third win in four matches.

Saturday's 1-0 win over Dunfermline at East End Park saw Ayr climb to sixth position in the table with 12 points.

The worst quarter of the 2022-23 campaign for the Honest Men saw them pick up 11 points out of 27 over the Christmas period.

But despite marking his team's report card as 'could do better', Bullen says the start they've made to the season was their "best case scenario" after injuries plagued the opening weeks of their campaign.

"I think our first quarter report would say 'could do better'," he told the Advertiser.

"I know we've finished relatively strongly, winning three of our last four, but we had a period there when injuries held us back.

"I think we can say that with clarity now, with the new central midfielders bedding in and getting the trust, and that's what brings the belief back in the player and also in the supporters that things are looking up going into the second quarter."

Logan Chalmers' early goal gave Ayr full points in Fife, with keeper Charlie Albinson pulling off a superb save after the break to deny Alex Jakubiak on the rebound after Ben Summers’ shot cannoned back off the post.

Bullen was delighted with his players carried out their roles in Fife, despite feeling as if Ayr could have been further ahead when the whistle blew for half-time.

He added: "The overall performance in the first half was brilliant.

"I think the fact Dunfermline have had to make substitutions and change their shape a bit was massive pat on the back for how well we were doing.

"We created chances, although our goalkeeper has had to make a match-winning save to keep us level.

"Our play probably merited more than one goal. But when you come in at half time and it is only 1-0, there's still a fear that something can happen.

"We felt that against a 3-5-2 there were opportunities to get switch of plays and get 2 v 1 scenarios down the sides.

"We knew that the strikers would be a handful, and gave our midfielders the belief that the ball would go up there and stick, so I was really pleased with how it went."

Ayr kick off the second quarter of their campaign against Morton at Somerset Park this Saturday.

The Greenock side are stuck at the bottom of the table, having failed to win since defeating Bullen's men 3-1 at Cappielow in the season opener back in August. 

But despite their opponents' position in the standings, Bullen says he'll be taking nothing for granted.

"Our feet are planted, and we know we're going to have some bumps in the road," he said.

"But we know that we're capable of taking points from anyone.

"We know Morton will be a really tough nut to crack. Dougie (Imrie) and his staff have done a great job.

"Our away form has been really strong, but our home form has not been so good, so we need to turn that around as well."

Saturday's clash at Somerset gets under way at 3pm.