GIVEN the freezing winter weather, you might be forgiven for thinking Scottish soccer stars would jet off to warmer climes for their mid-season training break.

But not Partick Thistle players: they're heading for their favourite UK holiday hotspot... Blackpool!

The Scottish Premier League squad of 20 players and coaches will travel to the resort on January 19 for four days to prepare for the rest of the Scottish football season, which resumes on January 25.

"The manager, John Lambie, has gone to Blackpool with Partick Thistle for the last ten years. It could be a bit of superstition but we always win the next match when we come back," said Thistle's chief executive Alan Dick.

The players will enjoy a week off before preparing by the sea for their next match against Dundee, Alan said. But it won't be all fun and games.

"There's no holiday in Blackpool, it's purely for training; indoor and outdoor.

"They'll probably be doing some work on the beach, running, jogging and doing weights."

And the squad has always enjoyed their Blackpool trips -- apart from one unfortunate accident in the early 1990s.

"John was thrown into the sea by the players and he hit a plank and suffered a punctured lung.

"He was in hospital for ten days and missed the next game," Alan said, swiftly adding the players are banned from ever throwing their manager into the sea again.

But Alan hopes the squad will return refreshed from their seaside sortie.

"As long as John is manager of the club I think we'll be going to Blackpool," he added.