Cumbernauld Colts v Bonnyrigg Rose: All pressure is on rivals in Scottish Cup clash, says boss Doyle
The Broadwood side host their Lowland League rivals under the lights tonight
Cumbernauld Colts boss John Doyle insists all the pressure is on Bonnyrigg Rose in Saturday’s Scottish Cup second round tie.
The Broadwood outfit welcome their Lowland League rivals to Cumbernauld looking to seal their place in the third round for the very first time.
Rose were relegated from League Two last term and have strengthened to try and secure an immediate return to the SPFL.
Colts were edged out 1-0 when the sides met on league business in Midlothian back in August and while Doyle admits his side should be confident they can cause an upset, he insists the weight of expectation is all on the visitors.
He said: “We played Bonnyrigg not too long ago in the league and we lost narrowly.
“We probably should have got a point out of that game, but we came away with nothing.
“Bonnyrigg have improved since them and on Saturday they got a great result against Clydebank, as well as turning Albion Rovers over last week.
“So they will go into the game in high spirits and will be feeling really confident.
“The challenge for us is can we utilise the big pitch at Broadwood? Can we make them run and make them work?
“It is going to be a tough game but the pressure is all on them.
“They are the team coming down from League Two last season, they are above us in the table and they will be looking for promotion.
“We need to show a bit of belief and a bit of fight. If we can show what we’ve been doing in the last couple of games, our team spirit can help us through.
“Bonnyrigg have got good squad depth and we will need to make sure we are on it. It is a Scottish Cup tie and anything can happen.
“Hopefully it happens for us.”
Colts warmed up with a battling 3-2 win at home to Gala Fairydean Rovers in the league on Saturday.
Doyle’s men came from 2-1 down to win courtesy of a Josh Jack double and an own goal.
“It was great to get three points,” said Doyle. “We had a tough wee period there with two defeats over the last couple of weeks.
“We didn’t lay a glove on Tranent and we left ourselves with too much to do against Kilwinning Rangers in the cup.
“We gave away a sloppy equaliser and we were disappointed with the way we conceded both of the goals.
“It was a big test for us to overcome a 2-1 deficit. To be fair to the boys, they answered that really well. It was on the players to see what they had in the mental tank and, thankfully, we managed to do that.”