Newly-reinstated Ross County captain Paul Quinn reckons last season’s League Cup heroics will make today’s opponents Montrose all the more eager to ensure the Staggies’ defence of the trophy begins with a whimper.
County take on the League 2 side at Links Park this afternoon in the first game of the newly introduced group stage of the renamed Betfred Cup competition.
The Highlanders will be driven by memories of parading the trophy through Dingwall in March, after securing their first major silverware with a 2-1 victory against Hibernian at Hampden Park.
Quinn knows the Gable Endies will be treating the game as their own cup final and has urged his side to put on a performance befitting of cup holders.
Quinn said: “If I was a Montrose player, with the cup holders coming, I’d see this as a great oppor-tunity.
“That’s where our professionalism has to be at its utmost. I don’t doubt that from any of our lads in this squad. That’s never been in question and never will be given the standards we set.
“We will have bad games but will never show teams a lack of respect or think we are better than them because they are lesser by being in a lower league.
“It’s important we show we are not just a Premiership club but also the holders. It’s important we get off to a good start. It’s the first competitive game.”
Quinn this week replaced Englishman Andrew Davies as club captain, with the latter on the lookout for a new club after his family failed to settle in the Highlands.
Former Aberdeen defender Quinn is already looking forward to carrying the armband, adding: “To be captain, at any stage of the season, is an honour. It shows what people above and around you think of you. I am delighted and really looking forward to getting on the pitch to try to take us one step forward.
“It’s good for me after coming back to the club. It just shows you never know what’s round the corner in football.
“A lot of people doubted me coming back here but we finished in the top six and won the League Cup. My next game will be as club captain, so it shows if you work hard and focus on what you want then you can achieve it in football.”
Quinn will miss today’s game after undergoing a minor groin operation earlier in the summer but a return to action is not far off for the 30-year-old, who said: “I had a groin problem since I came back from Aberdeen in January. I struggled to train most days and was just getting through the games.
“The matches were so important there was no time to have a rest. At the end of the season, I had a couple of injections which didn’t do more than settle the inflammation down.
“I’ve had a minor operation and it will take a couple of weeks to heal. The physio is top class here and he says I won’t be far away.”
