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Having recorded our best ever showing in the group stages of the Viaplay Cup, the team is now gearing up for the big kick-off to our League One campaign.

The action gets underway with an immediate return to the ZLX Stadium to face Hamilton. We emerged unbeaten against Accies in the four encounters last season, and were denied victory last weekend only by an equaliser in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

Now, there are three vital league points up for grabs as the side looks to get off to a positive start in our bid for an immediate return to the Championship, and manager Paul Hartley says the second half showing last weekend gives him genuine cause for optimism:

“We played well, a lot of good stuff, a lot of good football, we pressed well and didn’t look in any trouble until that very late goal. Overall, I was really pleased with the performance of the players and the attitude they showed.

“It does help having already played them, there might be one or two players back in, but not a lot will change. We know what to expect, it’s our opening game and we need to be on it. There’s a thirty-six game marathon ahead of us and we want to get off to a strong start.”

Having brought eighteen new faces to the club over the summer, it has been a hectic time at Balmoral Stadium, but the boss believes he is already seeing the new-look squad come together, and is reaping the rewards of the move towards full-time football:

“I think we’re in a good position right now. We do have a few key players with injuries, and there’s still a lot of hard work to be done, but the guys already have good fitness levels, they’ve been excellent in training, and I am feeling optimistic.

“Working with the players every day has been the big thing. We’ve had time to do video analysis, have a look at what we’re doing well, what we can improve on, and as the season goes on we’ll see real benefits from being able to do that.

“I can already see the spirit in the group, they’ve all settled in well. It has also meant I’ve been able to spend more time with them, to get to know them individually, not just as players, but personally and their lives outside football, and that plays a big part.”

One of the new faces who has made an immediate impact is Mark Gallagher, the midfielder scoring a stunning goal last weekend to get Cove back into the cup-tie in Lanarkshire:

“We were disappointed in how we had played in the first half, so getting the equaliser gave us a big boost going in at the interval. As for my goal, as soon as I hit it, I knew it had a chance, so I was obviously really happy to see it going in.”

There have been massive changes at Balmoral Stadium, but Mark says everyone at the club has made him feel welcome, and he believes there are already signs the squad is knitting together:

“I think we’ve all gelled really well, being full-time has helped so much in that, and there are some big characters in the changing room. You need that mix of personalities, and I think we’ve got that. There’s a lot of fun in there, but of course you’ve got to work hard too, and we’re all doing that.

“I thought Hamilton were decent on the ball last week until we turned the game around. They’re a big club, you would certainly expect them to be among our promotion rivals, and it will be a big test, but it’s one we’re looking forward to and ready for.

“It’s going to be a tough league, you just need to look through the fixtures to see that, but it’s a challenge we have to rise to and getting a positive start will be important.”

While getting back to the Championship has to be the aim in the coming campaign, no-one at Balmoral Stadium will be making any over-the-top public pronouncements. The manager has his targets, but will be keeping those inside the dressing room:

“We always have a points total in our mind for every quarter, but that’s something we keep to ourselves. We’ll see where we are at each stage, then reassess what we need to do for the rest of the season.”

Long-term absentees Blair Yule and Luke Strachan will again be missing, and the game has also come too early for both Mitch Megginson and Fraser Fyvie, who were absent last week.

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