Raith boss Gary Locke’s desire to see his side return to winning ways tomorrow has been undermined by a crippling injury list.
Rovers could be without up to nine players for the game against Falkirk with the Kirkcaldy outfit looking to bounce back after last weekend’s shock Irn-Bru Cup exit at League 2 Forfar.
Locke admits he could be struggling to fill his bench and may have to draft in some of the club’s untried youngsters against Peter Houston’s side.
He said: “It’s a nightmare at the moment. We’ve got about nine out and for our size of squad it’s certainly taken its toll a bit.
“I still think with the players available we’ve got a strong enough team to go and get a result.
“But we’re certainly down to the bare bones in terms of covering the bench.
“We’ll be lucky if we get one out of the nine fit for Saturday.
“We’ve obviously got the two goalies, Craig Barr, Scott Robertson, Chris Johnston, big Jean-Yves M’Voto has picked up an injury that looks like it’s going to keep him out . . .
“So, we are down to the bare bones and I’ve added a couple of youngsters to the squad.
“But I’m not going to use it as an excuse, it’s part of the game and we’ve just got to get on with it.
“And hopefully we’ll have one or two of them back in the next couple of weeks.
“But it’s about the squad. Throughout the course of the season, we’re going to get injuries, we’re going to get suspensions.
“Unfortunately, you always feel you get the best out of the squad when everybody’s fit and available, and there’s competition for places.
“But at the moment, unfortunately for us, we’ve not got that.”
Locke admitted last week’s cup game was a “bad day at the office” and is despite the injuries he is determined his side will get back on track tomorrow.
However, he acknowledged that it will be difficult to do so against a Falkirk outfit he rates highly.
He added: “It’s a great game against a really good side. Everybody keeps telling me they’ve had an indifferent start to the season but they’ll be up there this season, no doubt about that.
“They’ve proved that over the last couple of years. They’ve got a great squad and a great management team, and this will be a really tough game.
“They’re a good side, very workmanlike, and they all know each other inside out, so we know how tough a game it’s going to be.”
The manager in the opposite dug-out is someone Locke knows well and he holds “Housty” in high regard.
Locke said: “He’s done an unbelievable job. He’s someone I know really well, he was my youth coach at Hearts. He’s done unbelievably well the whole of his managerial career and coaching career.
“I know how difficult it’s going to be to beat one of Housty’s teams.
“But it’s certainly a game everyone here is looking forward to and hopefully we can continue the decent wee run we’ve been on in the league.”