Jack Ross believes there is a huge incentive for his players to progress in the Scottish Cup, ahead of his side’s fifth round tie against East Fife.
The Buddies manager told stmirren.com: “Being a cup tie and the incentive of a quarter final place makes it an exciting match for us. The opportunity of progressing to the last eight of any competition, for any player, any manager, should be huge for anyone”
Our cup form has been excellent, across different cup competitions. If you look at our last ten games results they have been okay. We have won three, lost three and drawn four.
"In different circumstances our form is all right still not brilliant but the position we find ourselves in means we have to be better than that.”
Now, ten days after the transfer window has closed, Ross believes that the squad has improved and there comes more challenges with the intake of new players.
He said: “I feel we have a stronger squad now. The challenge is to gel them together and some are playing catch up, but the fact we have had another week of training should help us ahead of tomorrow as well.”
The manager feels the new recruits are settling in well at the Paisley 2021 and believes that will continue as they train more as a group.
He said: “Some of them I knew, and that was an important part, I like the trust element, working with players you trust.
"Harry Davis only came in on Thursday and by the Saturday he is still getting to know player’s names. With another weeks training he feels a lot more comfortable, and he looks good in training.
With such a contrast with between league and cup form Ross still prepares the Saints in the same manner no matter which competition his team are playing in.
“How we prepare from a training and an analysis point of view is exactly the same," Jack admitted. "East Fife in a cup-tie is treated exactly the same as if it were Hibs in a league game.
Whether the players find a release with it being a cup game I do not know, they can only answer that themselves. People may think that is the case with the cup form, it may just be we have had our rewards with the cup this season.”
