Malky Mackay believes competition for places at Ross County ahead of Scottish Premiership kick off helping fuel Staggies' push to top Premier Sports Cup group
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Ross County's stars are still jostling for starting spots ahead of the Scottish Premiership season – but manager Malky Mackay is focused on qualifying from their Premier Sports Cup group.
The Staggies need a positive result – either on penalties or inside 90 minutes – to ensure that they will finish top of Group C and put their name in the hat for the second round.
With home advantage against East Fife this weekend, they will be strong favourites to do just that, and Mackay wants his side to make sure they go and finish the job in Dingwall.
"It was a clear target from day one," he said.
"We were unfortunate that this chance was not available to us last year, so it's terrific that we've managed to get to a point where we're one game from getting through.
"Obviously we've got a game on Saturday where we've got to make sure we go and play a really good, competitive game against East Fife.
"Having looked at the tables over the last couple of days, you can see two or three teams that were maybe expected to go through that look as though they can't go through, so that shows the value and importance of making sure all of these games are approached in the correct manner – and how tough they actually are."
Competition for places
With just one pre-season friendly under their belts before starting the group stage, most of County's squad have had some time on the pitch over the last three games.
That, in turn, has meant nearly everyone has had the chance to impress Mackay and stake their claim for a first team berth by the time the Staggies travel to Hearts for their Premiership opener.
As far as Mackay is concerned, that can only be a good thing as players will try to ensure they are in peak form to fight off the competition for their positions.
"It's a squad that has depth in it now," Mackay enthused.
"I'm looking at players coming off the bench that are just as good as the ones that are on the pitch.
"It was such a new group of people last year, we were constructing a squad, but this year we're another year down the line with that.
"It means that there's then competition for places, and when I see that anywhere I've been on a regular basis, you start getting performances because you have people starting to look over their shoulder rather than naturally becoming complacent in their position.
"They're all fighting for places right now before going down to Tynecastle."
Ready for the rigours of the Premiership?
Only Dominic Samuel will miss this weekend's match against East Fife after picking up a knock, leaving Mackay with a decision to make.
In the last game before the Premiership begins, he could try to put out his best side in preparation – or he could use it as another opportunity to get minutes in legs and sharpen the squad up.
"It's always a difficult one, because when I played you would have a six-week pre-season, then four or five friendlies, and you still felt you were only clicking four or five games into the season," he recalled.
"The intensity of the Premiership, that's really the crux of it. Once you get into that, that's when you start to get players up to that level.
"The good thing is – and this year we're seeing it come to fruition – the competitiveness of the games we're playing.
"There's a reason we're playing these games. Everyone is trying to win them, because it's good for any football club and their finances to get through.
"The teams that you're playing are putting out their best team to try and win the game, rather than having three or four friendlies against teams from down south or abroad and seeing 11 changes like we did up at Brora.
"The fact that you're into competitive football means that they have to be up to speed, and I think that drives it a little bit quicker, so that will make things happen a little bit quicker.
"It will be the same on Saturday. You hope everyone's up to speed right away, but it's a process."
