Raith’s Lewis Toshney defiantly insists that the club can overcome a devastating double whammy and win promotion next season.
Rovers suffered play-off heartache on Saturday, losing 2-0 to Hibs at Easter Road to go out by the slimmest of margins on aggregate.
The match in Leith also looks increasingly likely to be manager Ray McKinnon’s last in charge of the Kirkcaldy club with the 45-year-old red-hot favourite to take over as boss at Dundee United.
If he does indeed swap Stark’s Park for Tannadice, it will be a huge blow for Rovers with Toshney rating McKinnon the best manager he has ever worked under.
However, the player believes no matter what happens with McKinnon, the nucleus of the Raith team will still be in place next season and they will all be determined to make that step up to the Premiership.
Toshney said: “We have a few loan boys but the spine of the team will still be there – Cat (Kevin Cuthbert), Davo (Iain Davidson), Benny (Kyle Benedictus), me – we are going to be here next season.
“There is a great team spirit and whoever comes in, they will have a very good side.
“We should have another great chance of going for the play-offs again and maybe even promotion.
“We will fancy ourselves to do it. We went 12 games unbeaten there.
“We lost at Ibrox the last time we were there but we went through everybody else in the league.
“So there is nothing to fear next season and the boys will be buzzing to go.”
Toshney admitted he was still unsure if McKinnon would definitely be leaving but one thing he was certain of was the incredible team spirit that exists in the Rovers dressing-room
He added: “I honestly don’t know what’s happening on whether the gaffer is going to go or not.
“He has done a brilliant job here. No-one expected us to get to the play-offs in the first place.
“It has been brilliant with all the boys sticking together.
“It is a very good group in the dressing-room. Even the loan boys who have come in, we have all gelled together as a team.
“We are just gutted we couldn’t get to the next round of the play-offs.”
When asked if it was the best team spirit he had ever experienced, Toshney said: “Yes. One hundred per cent.
“Everyone is working for each other and the gaffer is at the heart of it, pushing everybody on.
“He is the best manager I have ever worked under. He has been brilliant for me personally and I am sure the rest of the boys would say that as well.
“He is excellent.”
With Raith holding a 1-0 advantage from the first-leg at Stark’s Park, they would have been determined to frustrate Hibs on Saturday.
Instead, they made a disastrous start, conceding in just eight minutes when a John McGinn shot was deflected over the helpless Kevin Cuthbert in the Rovers goal.
Then four minutes later, Liam Henderson sent a corner in from the Hibees’ right with Darren McGregor heading home to make it two, cancelling out Rovers’ advantage.
Raith were understandably stunned and struggled to secure a foothold in the game with home keeper Conrad Logan a virtual spectator.
However, as the half-hour mark approached, they began to settle and had a great chance when Ryan Hardie had a shot blocked by Logan. The ball broke to Louis Longridge but he just couldn’t get his shot off with McGregor eventually snuffing out the danger.
As the second-half wore on, Rovers threw the kitchen sink at Hibs but they just could not find a way through to nick a goal and take the game to extra-time.
However, Toshney insists the Rovers players can hold their heads high.
He said: “The boys never left anything on the pitch. We gave everything but just couldn’t break them down.
“We were definitely on top in the second-half and I honestly thought the goal would come but the boys can hold their heads high.”
Meanwhile, McKinnon admitted he did not know if there would indeed be an approach from United. He said: “I couldn’t say – I’m not in control of that. But as it stands I’m the Raith Rovers manager. I’ve got another year at Raith.”
