Cove Rangers boss looks to build on fine start

Cove Rangers manager Paul Hartley hopes they can build on their fine start to the season when they visit Elgin City.

The Granite City side make the trip to Borough Briggs tomorrow sitting top of League Two with 16 points from a possible 18 so far this campaign.

It’s been a bright start to life as an SPFL club for Cove, but Balmoral Stadium boss Hartley knows that is all it is – a start.

He wants to see his team maintain the same standards in the coming weeks, starting at Elgin tomorrow.

Hartley said: “I think it’s been a good, solid start from us. There have been some really good performances, but we won’t get carried away.

“We’re only six games in, we’ve got 30 to go. Our main thing at the start of the season was trying to get as many points on the board as early as we could.

“That was important – we never made any predictions – all we were wanting to do is get as many points on the board as we can.

“It’s about trying to keep the form going and keep up our consistency.

“We’ve been really consistent and scoring a load of goals. The performances have been very good.

“The players need to keep performing well and keep up the consistency and hard work.

“The players who have come in have gelled straight away.

“The players are learning all the time and we’re learning about them.

“You can always improve and can always get better and that’s what we’re looking do.

“You can’t stand still because people will just go past you and you fall behind.

“We have to set the standards in every game and every training session.

“We have to set standards at the club and the ambition has to be there.

“We’re all ambitious, the players have to be ambitious and we have to keep it going because there’s a lot of work still to be done.”

Elgin are seventh in League Two with six points from six games.

But results like their 2-1 win over Dundee at Dens Park in the Tunnock’s Caramel Wafer Cup a fortnight ago show their quality.

Hartley added: “It will be a tough game. You saw the result they had against Dundee recently.

“That shows what they’re capable of and we know we’re in for a difficult game.

“They’ve got some good players there and the front two (Kane Hester and Shane Sutherland) are a handful.

“Every game away from home is always tough and we expect no different.

“Shane Sutherland scores goals, he always does. I saw him earlier in the season, down at Alloa, and he was a real handful and they won against Dundee.

“They’re a good team and maybe they haven’t got the points they deserve this season.

“We’ll have to be at our best to get a result against them.”

On-loan St Johnstone striker John Robertson returns to the Cove squad after an ankle problem.

Defender Ryan Strachan may miss out due to a groin issue.