Dixon expects another close cup tie with Arbroath

Paul Dixon was part of the Falkirk squad who took on Arbroath in the Scottish Cup last season

The Bairns travelled to Gayfield last January where a 0-0 draw saw the tie go to a replay at The Falkirk Stadium which Lee Miller and David McCracken’s side won 2-0 with goals from Conor Sammon and Declan McManus.

Dixon, one of the Falkirk players still with the club who played in that match, says the Lichties haven’t changed their squad very much and that they know what to expect.

He said: "It will be very similar to last year, they've not changed their personal very much,

"They lost the young midfielder (Miko Virtannen) who was recalled from his loan by Aberdeen this week but apart from that they are very much the same.

"We have got a few differences to our team from last season and from our point of view we'll be fully focused on winning the game and getting through to the next round.

"You could see last season there wasn't a whole lot between the two teams and that showed why it was so tight and took till later in the second game to get on top.

"We did create chances in the first game to not take it to a replay but we went there focused firstly on putting in a good performance.”

The Scottish Cup holds some good memories for the 34-year old who was part of the Dundee United squad that lifted the Cup in 2010 despite missing the final through injury.

Like every other player in the country he want to create more memories and be part of a memorable cup run with his current team.

"Every player, no matter what level you play at, you want to try and go on a cup run.

"I've been there myself and won it and it's a great experience, although I didn’t play in the final I was still part of the team that got there and helped them to win it.

"It's a great feeling to be a part of that and you have to come up against the best to beat the best.

"If we get through to the next round we can maybe test ourselves against a higher team.

"Hopefully we can show the quality we have in our team and come out on top.

"I'm sure a lot of people think Falkirk shouldn't be in the position they are in but ultimately we are and we the players have to do our best to get out of this position and back into the higher division.

"We've had a wee bump in the road the last three games but as professionals we're working hard to change that."