Irvine Meadow boss Ben Carson is aiming for further cup success after a giantkilling of Lowland League side Gala Fairydean Rovers.
The Medda knocked their hosts out of the South Challenge Cup at the third round stage on Saturday as Euan Baird’s fine finish in the closing minutes secured a 1-0 win for Carson’s men – who sit two division below Rovers.
And it kicked-off a run of four straight cup ties in fine fashion as they welcome Renfrew to Meadow Park on Saturday in the third round of the Scottish Junior Cup.
After that they’ll host Civil Service Strollers of the Lowland League in senior Scottish Cup second round action on October 26.
The cup quartet then ends the following week with an away clash at West of Scotland Premier Division outfit Johnstone Burgh in the West of Scotland League Cup.
Speaking to the club’s media following their win over Gala, Carson commented: “I’m delighted with the excellent performance.
“We really took that from the second half of last week into the way we started the game. We knew Gala Fairydean were going to try and be a team to dominate the ball and they did that.
“They dominated large spells of possession but I thought we were really good in our shape and really good in our structure. The goal’s a real good bit of play and Bairdy gets through and slots it in so we’re delighted.”
Their cup exploits are in contrast to their poor start to the league, as they sit in the relegation zone with a solitary win from their opening eight fixtures.
Carson, though, says it’s time to focus on securing cup runs and the league success will come when it’s time to turn to their attention back to the bread and butter of the West of Scotland First Division.
He added: “We’ll get our homework done on Renfrew. We’ve already played them this season and got a good result up there.
“It will be a different challenge for us at Meadow Park in the Scottish Junior Cup and then obviously we’ve got Civil Service in the senior Scottish Cup. It’s a great opportunity for us to get into the third round and one we’re delighted be in, but we want to go another step.
“I said to the boys to not look at the league table until Christmas. We chip away with the games in the cup then we’ll look at the league but if we’re playing like that (against Gala) then we’ll not have a problem in the league.”