Rosseyes firstStag partyat Parkhead
ROSS DRAPER has never tasted victory in Celtic’s back yard – and neither have Ross County.
But the former Inverness midfielder reckons the Staggies must step out at Celtic Park today with a genuine belief they can topple the best in the country.
County’s two past Glasgow wins against the Hoops came at Hampden in the cups and few will give the basement boys a prayer in today’s clash.
The odds are stacked against the Staggies yet Draper has always relished the chance to prove the doubters wrong.
He said: “It is always a fixture to look forward to, playing at that stadium with the crowd and atmosphere that brings.
“There is little pressure on us. It’s the chance to go down there and try to cause an upset.
“I didn’t play when Billy Mckay scored the winner at Celtic Park for Caley Thistle a couple of years ago. I was suspended but went down to watch the lads.
“But I was involved when we were 2-0 up and drew 2-2 there, having conceded just before half-time. If we could have held on until the break we’d have had a great chance of an upset.
“I’ve never won down there but I’ve been part of winning teams at home against Celtic. This is a chance to hopefully correct that.”
County are three points adrift of Partick Thistle at the bottom and Draper knows they need to strike a balance between defensive solidity and attacking adventure to get anything at Parkhead.
He said: “We’ve been working on discipline without the ball.
“You need everyone to be on board with the defensive gameplan but also when we’ve got the ball we have to play.
“This is a big week, with the Partick game up here on Tuesday and Hibs at home on Saturday. But it is certainly not the case we’re writing off this weekend’s match.
“We don’t see why we can’t go down there and take three points. It is going to be tough but why not?
“We have players in the team who can hurt them.”