Mackay backing a promotion push
Stirling Albion boss Dave Mackay believes his side have what it takes to win promotion from Ladbrokes League Two.
The Binos begin their campaign away to Stenhousemuir on Saturday then face Berwick Rangers and Edinburgh City at Forthbank before ending August with a trip to play title favourites Peterhead.
Stirling have finished seventh and sixth in the last two seasons and are preparing for a fifth campaign out of six in Scotland’s bottom tier, with Ladbrokes rating them a 12/1 shot for the title. Albion enjoyed a good Betfred Cup campaign and Mackay (below) believes they can challenge at the top end of the table. He said: “I’ve played in plenty leagues myself where we have known before the start that we could never win it, but we are in a league I know we can win — and there will probably be seven, eight, nine other managers all thinking the same thing. “I’m sure we will have a good season. I’ve just got a feeling that we have the right type of characters as well as the fact they are good players. “Most importantly, the boys believe they can have a good season. I think they realise the competition they have. I genuinely don’t think there is anyone who thinks they are 100-per-cent guaranteed to start, which is a great thing.
“Even the likes of Willie Robertson, who is club captain, isn’t guaranteed a start — he has to show he is worthy of a place, just like anyone else.
“At the beginning of the season Cammy Binnie was odds-on to start in goalbut we have brought someone in (Mark Foden on loan from Ross County) who can challenge him and that’s healthy as it keeps everyone on their toes.
“It will be tough to pick a team on Saturday and there will be some players who will feel a bit disappointed but I’ll go with what
I think is the best team to beat Stenhousemuir and that might not be the best team to play Berwick Rangers the following week.”
Mackay thinks the Warriors will be one of the favourites for promotion along with Peterhead.
“They have had a huge turnaround in the squad which sometimes can work in your favour and sometimes it can take time for the team to gel but Saturday is a derby game and it’s one for everyone to get excited about – the fans, the players and the management.
“Pre-season has gone pretty well, as has the Betfred Cup, but these are the big games for us now.”
Stirling could hardly have made a worse start to the season, being hammered 4-1 at Falkirk in the Betfred Cup, but have done little wrong since then and will be confident of achieving a positive result when they make the short journey to play Brown Ferguson’s men this weekend.
Mackay added:“The Falkirk game was such a big disappointment because we never turned up on the day but the response since then has been excellent and these are the sort of performances that I expect from us.
“I know we are capable of them and that’s why I kept the players I did and added others who I thought could make us stronger. The players have set the standards now and it is up to them to try and achieve them on a weekly basis.
“I’m happy with the squad we have. At most we might try to add one more player during the transfer window but if I’ve to go with what I’ve got just now I’m more than happy with that.”
The former St Johnstone skipper had to negotiate some difficult times in 2016/17 after taking over from Stuart McLaren before a fine run of form hoisted the Binos up the table in the spring.
He added:“I’ve learned a lot. Last year was an extremely tough welcome to management. There were obviously major issues on the playing side when I came to the club and we had to make changes – it’s never easy doing that during a season and we were bottom of the league for a time.
“Hopefully that will be the making of me – it is my squad now so if things go wrong there is no-one else to blame other than myself.”
Albion are making their first trip to Stenhousemuir since January 2015 when goals from Craig Comrie and Gordon Smith earned them a 2-1 win.
Striker Andy Little is still sidelined and Ross Cameron, top scorer for the U20 side last season, is also set to miss out after suffering an ankle injury in Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Queen’s Park in a closed-door game.
After seeing their eight-year stay in League 1 come to an end, the Warriors have brought in more than a dozen new players over the summer, including former Stirling Albion keeper Chris Smith and go into the game on the back of a 3-0 defeat at Hamilton in the Betfred Cup.