John McGlynn is ready to ring the changes when Raith Rovers face Inverness on Tuesday.
Several Stark’s Park stars are nursing bumps and bruises following their 2-1 victory over Falkirk and McGlynn is unwilling to be foolhardy with their fitness.
The SPFL Trust Trophy encounter precedes a mouth-watering Championship showdown against Arbroath next weekend and, with the Fifers joint-top of the table, the trip to Gayfield takes precedence.
However, McGlynn is fiercely proud of Raith’s current 12 game unbeaten run and has vowed to field a side in the Highlands which he believes can reach the semi-finals.
“We might be forced into some changes,” McGlynn told Courier Sport. “We are still in the process of weighing up our options.
“We’ll be looking to put the best team on the pitch that we believe can win the game. The boys are on a good run and we want to continue that.
“But we aren’t going to take risks with players who could make little knocks worse by playing. Little strains can become tears — and that’s something we just can’t gamble with.
“We have a massive game at the weekend against Arbroath and the Championship is our priority.
“It about striking that balance of getting the strongest team possible, and being sensible about things.”
Ripping up the record books
Rovers head up the A9 seeking their first victory over the Caley Jags since October 2000.
Notwithstanding the disparity in divisions between the clubs for much of that 21-year period, a sequence of 25 matches without a victory represents a hoodoo for the Fifers.
“First of all, no-one ever gets an easy game up in Inverness,” continued McGlynn.
“And for a long spell, Inverness have been in the top league while Raith Rovers have been floating between League 1 and the Championship.
🔴🔵 Roddy MacGregor only scores belters 🚀#cinchChamp | @ICTFC pic.twitter.com/zWBLlGvM2E
— SPFL (@spfl) August 9, 2021
“There’s been a period when the teams have been a fair bit apart.
“But there was a draw here the last time we played, when we went down to ten men.
“We lost the previous league game up there despite giving a good account of ourselves, with the young lad [Roddy MacGregor] scoring a great goal.
“The matches have been very close lately and, like anything, that record isn’t going to last forever.
“We’ll overcome it one day — and hopefully that’s Tuesday, because we want to stay in the competition and compete for this trophy.”
Raith Rovers are taking part in the SPFL Trust’s ‘Festive Friends’ programme, as 41 clubs reach over 3,000 elderly people at risk of social isolation — delivering Christmas gift hampers or inviting participants into their ground for a hot meal.
