Gavin Price insists his Elgin City side will leave nothing to chance in their Scottish Cup clash away to East of Scotland Premier Division hosts Hill of Beath Hawthorn on Saturday.
The Moray club, who are third in League Two after last week’s 3-1 win at Annan Athletic, are chasing a place in the fourth-round of the knockout competition.
Hill of Beath, who have knocked out Irvine Meadow, Inverurie Locos and Newtongrange Star, are 11th in their division, but their recent form after a sticky start has been good, with only one reversal in their last seven fixtures.
Elgin swept through to this tie courtesy of a 4-0 victory against East of Scotland First Division opponents Camelon Juniors, with striker Kane Hester netting all the goals at Borough Briggs.
This is Elgin’s cup final too – Price
Price, along with assistant Jim Weir, have been to watch their cup rivals and expects a challenging contest from the first whistle from the Fifers at Keirs Park if the game passes a 7.30am pitch inspection.
He said: “Jim and I watched Hill of Beath a few weeks ago (in a 3-3 draw) against Linlithgow and we know just from speaking to guys we know who are involved in those leagues that they are in a false position in the division.
“We know the quality of some of the teams in that league. Sauchie beat Bonnyrigg Rose in the last round, for example, and Hill of Beath have got a number of really good players.
“On paper, there is no question we’re the favourites and we’ve got the stronger team, but we must ensure we leave nothing to chance. We need to make sure we’re 100% at it.
“We will give Hill of Beath all the respect and treat this tie 100%. While Hill of Beath will view this as a cup final, so do Elgin. We need to get through and take the club into the fourth-round.”
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Performance levels must be high
Elgin already have a last-16 SPFL Trust Trophy tie against Jim Duffy’s League One Clyde on December 10 to look forward to.
And Price hopes his men don’t slip up against Hill of Beath, who are bossed by former Motherwell, Dunfermline, Livingston and Raith Rovers midfielder Jason Dair.
He said: “Getting through takes you into the New Year still in the Scottish Cup.
“It gives the club a boost and gives you a chance to get a big draw in the next round and go further in the competition. It’s really important on Saturday that we’re bang at it, as we were against Annan on Saturday.
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— Scottish Cup (@ScottishCup) November 21, 2022
“If we do that, I’m confident we can progress, but if we don’t replicate that, it leaves the door wide open for Hill of Beath, who I can guarantee will make it really tough for us.”
Heavy pitch could alter play – boss
Hill of Beath’s league fixture against Oakley United was postponed at the weekend due to a waterlogged park and conditions might well dictate the dynamic of the game, according to Price.
He added: “I imagine it will be quite a heavy pitch. Their game was off there on Saturday and when we were down there earlier in the month, the pitch was quite heavy-going.
“We need to be prepared to play a different kind of game at times on Saturday and certainly be up for the fight.
“There is absolutely no doubt Hill of Beath will ask questions of us in that respect. However, we have players capable of rising to that challenge – that doesn’t faze me.”
Goalkeeper Daniel Hoban and defender Matthew Cooper are expected to be sidelined with injuries, but City will be boosted by forwards Dylan Lawrence and Fin Allan being added to the travelling squad.
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