Rory McAllister has proven he can still contribute to the Cove Rangers cause – but feels he needs to manage his body better.
The veteran goalscorer came off the bench on Saturday against Queen of the South to score the late equaliser which kept his side in the Scottish Cup.
The 34-year-old is the leading scorer at Cove this season but with a hectic fixture schedule coming up, manager Paul Hartley has told him he will manage his workload in the coming weeks.
Cove will have midweek games in the next two weeks, with Rangers B visiting tomorrow night in the Challenge Cup quarter-final and then the replay against Queens at Palmerston the following Tuesday.
“The gaffer spoke to me on Thursday night and said he’s going to manage me over the next few weeks because there’s a lot of games,” he said.
90' | CRFC 2-2 QOTS
RORY MCALLISTER YOU BEAUTYYYYYYY#CRFCLive pic.twitter.com/wvRHhRkNrZ
— Cove Rangers FC (@CoveRangersFC) November 27, 2021
“I’m happy to come on and be involved. That’s 13 for the season now and hopefully I can get a few more.
“I know I’m in the twilight of my career but I still feel good enough to play and contribute at this level.
“I just need to manage myself a bit better during the week. For the last few games I did feel a bit off it but I didn’t train Tuesday and felt miles better.
“It’s just about managing my legs and getting ready for Saturday, which is the most important part of the week.
“If there’s games Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday-Tuesday, I’m never going to do that. There’s no point even saying it. But I’d like to think I can play Saturday-Saturday and still contribute.”
McAllister’s late strike earned Cove a deserved draw, after they had been the better team against their full-time Championship opponents.
“We dominated the game and we were unlucky not to win,” said McAllister. “It was a weird one with the corner being retaken but it’s just one of these things.
“It means a trip down there for the replay but I think we’ll do alright. We’re looking good just now.
“You weren’t able to tell they were the Championship team. I think they’ve got a young team just now and we’ve got good experience – I think we’d be fitted for that league and it’s good that we can compete.”