Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Reid warns of big changes as Rovers flop
Brian Reid blasted his Scottish Cup flops and warned there will be wholesale changes at Cliftonhill after Albion Rovers crashed out to Buckie Thistle.
The Coatbridge side fell at the first hurdle after a superb display from the Highland League high-flyers saw them ease into round two with a 3-0 win, thanks to a double from the outstanding Andrew Macaskill and a strike from Scott Adams.
And after suffering a sixth defeat in seven games, Reid revealed at least six new faces will be coming in to shore up their squad.
He said:“on the day we were nowhere near good enough so we are very disappointed.
“Too many of them were way below average.
“But the January window is coming up. I’ve got two centre halves lined up and I’m looking to add at least three or four more.
“Nobody in that dressing room can have any complaints because it’s not enjoyable as a manager watching that type of performance and we are bitterly disappointed.
“The window will be interesting because I have to strengthen and get better than what we’ve got here at the moment.
“Buckie made it hard but we’ve got to do better.
“If we keep shooting ourselves in the foot and losing sloppy goals you are going to make it difficult.
“They should have been up for it.
“We prepared them properly but when they go over that line they need to go and do what they are instructed to do.”
Reid’s men have shipped seven goals in their last two games and he admits it’s a huge blow to the club financially to be out of the competition so early.
He added:“you want to go on a good cup run and the club can benefit from that financially as well, so we are really disappointed from that aspect as well. “We never got going.”
Rovers’sole focus will now be on League Two survival, with the Betfred League Cup and Scottish Cup already passing them by.
And their gaffer hopes his players can pick themselves up and return to the kind of form that saw them stun title hopefuls Elgin City earlier this month in a 3-1 win.
Reid, whose side host leaders Queen’s Park on Saturday, said:“we need to try and get back to the Elgin game and that level of performance because that was nowhere near good enough.”