Motherwell boss Steven Hammell says Saturday’s Scottish Cup clash at Arbroath will be a real test of his side’s mentality.
Hammell expects the Championship strugglers to be right up for the Gayfield battle, and says the elements could also play a major role in the fourth-round tie.
But he says his side’s attitude needs to be right before they can even consider ousting Dick Campbell’s Red Lichties from the competition.
“It’s going to be a difficult game,” Hammell admitted. “If ever a game is going to test your mentality, your application, your attitude, it’s going to be this game here.
“We need to make sure we’ve done a lot of work, and we’re absolutely not underestimating our opponents at all.
“It’s drilling home that message of these attributes that we need to take into the game; before we speak about talent and ability, we need to make sure the mentality is right, and we’re going into the game with the right approach.
“It’s tough to replicate the conditions that we might see at the weekend.
“It’s going to be testing conditions, and it’s not going to be a nice summer’s day at Fir Park.
“In some of the clips we’ve shown the players this week, keepers are hitting goal-kicks well into the opposition half, and then it [the wind] puts the brakes on and it ends up back in their 18-yard box.
“We understand it’s not going to be a perfect day, it’s going to be tough, it’s going to be a challenge.
“We have to be ready for that. It’s a test of mentality and character before you speak about football and stuff like that.”
While being wary of their opponents, Hammell says Saturday’s tie is a chance for them to progress in the competition and to provide a morale boost that can be taken into their league programme, with a trip to St Mirren lying in wait next weekend.
He said: “The Scottish Cup is a chance to get a break from the league, to pick up form, to rest players, and we feel it’s something we can go far in.
“We want to do well in the cup, we want to be doing as well as we can. It means a lot to me, it means a lot to the club, and the fans.
“We’ve maybe not done as well as we could have in recent times, so it’s a chance for us to progress.
“We can get a win and take that form into the league but that’s going to be the case every single weekend.
“It’s a very difficult cup to do well in, but we need to give it everything we’ve got while we’re in it.
“I want to give the fans a long cup run. We’ll take it as seriously as we can. It’s important to the club, it means a lot to the fans and to me personally.”
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