Glass says Cormack Park Covid protocol is working

Aberdeen manager Stephen Glass believes the decision to remain within their own biobubble at Cormack Park has helped the club avoid any Covid scares.

The virus has caused matches to be cancelled and training to be halted in the build-up to the new season with Ross County’s Premier Sports match at Forfar on Saturday in doubt due to positive cases at Victoria Park.

Glass is pleased Aberdeen have avoided having to halt their own pre-season programme due to the decision to remain at their training ground.

He said: “It is still there but the players are careful in what they are doing and it is one of the reasons why we’ve stayed here during the summer and kept things closed-doors. It has allowed us to control the environment.

“It’s important to still be very aware of the dangers that are out there, and I’m not saying the other clubs haven’t, but we have chosen as a club to work in a way this summer to contain it as best as we can and so far, so good. Hopefully it continues.

“The message out there at the moment is that we’re getting close to the end of restrictions and it is going to be a case that people will still catch it and could miss days of training so we have to be careful with what we do.”

The Dons’ pre-season preparations were modified last week when their first scheduled closed-doors match against Cove Rangers was postponed due to members of the

League One side having to isolate.

But the Aberdeen manager, whose side will face Caley Thistle at Cormack Park today in their first friendly, says his side has had no problem with adapting.

Glass said: “We’d already played games amongst ourselves before the Cove game. People don’t see games and think we haven’t played but we played 30 minutes in the first week, 45 minutes the next and then played 60 for the whole group instead of playing Cove so everybody is at the same level.

“We’ve got Inverness coming... and we’ll utilise the academy and Barry

Robson so that everyone in the group gets 90 minutes.”

He added: “We’ve been working on team stuff quite early. We’ve been game-like as quick as possible, since the first week to be honest.

“Players look after themselves pretty well these days and the days of running them for the sake of it are gone.

“You can set up teamrelated, game-related activity which works them harder than they normally do and we’ve found focusing on specific areas pushing them more productively.

“The players enjoy seeing a ball and they are doing well.”

The Aberdeen manager had no hesitation in having the vaccine but he has left the decision on whether to have it to his players themselves.

He said: “Nobody has been sent for a jag but some players through their personal choice have had it. Personally, I got it early and to me it is a wise choice, but it’s not through any medical knowledge.

“It’s through thinking vaccines are there for a reason.”

HOME SECURITY: Stephen Glass has opted to keep his Dons squad preparing at their training ground to avoid any Covid-19 cases at the club, a decison which has so far paid off.