John McGlynn on what the key factor against Cove Rangers could be as he assesses how his Falkirk squad has gelled

The Bairns boss did his summer transfer business early in the window with Sam Long, Nicky Hogarth, Tom Lang, Calvin Miller, Brad Spencer, Alfredo Agyeman and Ross MacIver all joining the club on the back of last season’s crushing promotion play-off failure to make up a group of 19 – with that in the eyes of McGlynn ‘a little tight’ but full of quality rather than quantity.

"So far so good in terms of that,” he said of his squad. “We have more challenges to come along the road but we have done very well so far. We have two exceptionally good goalkeepers in Sam (Long) and Nicky (Hogarth). Sam has been playing due to Nicky being unlucky with an injury as the plan was to give both some game time over the first month or so. They both train super well and I am very happy there.

“I was also delighted to be able to bring in Brad (Spencer) and Tom (Lang) from Raith Rovers. They are both Championship players and what a difference they have made. I knew the transition for them would be minimal because they know how myself and Smudger (Paul Smith) work. They were both looking forward to coming here.

“Alfie (Alfredo Agyeman), Ross MacIver and Calvin Miller have all made an impact too. We knew Alfie would do a job for us; he has an eye for goal, power, pace and everything you could want. He is a team player too.

“Big Ross is scoring – what more could you ask for? But his link-up play is also excellent. He is good in the air and he is the right type again to have in the dressing room.

“At the time, I didn’t think we could actually get someone like Calvin in. The situation arose and it was perfect. We wanted that left-sided player for balance and he can play in a number of positions.

“We are very happy with how the squad is gelling but I didn’t think there would be any issues. At 19 the squad is a little bit tight, but if we can keep them all fit, which we haven’t done yet, then I am very, very happy with what we have got. I would have liked one more but the budget is gone.

“Sometimes you can have too many players. Some people can be unsettled when they don’t play.”

Looking ahead to the trip to Aberdeen this weekend, McGlynn reckons his side’s quickly-formed together could play a big part in the match against a Cove outfit that themselves have had a busy summer. Despite dropping out of the Championship, Paul Hartley’s team have moved to a full-time model with the squad from last term almost completely gutted.

McGlynn said: “They’ve made 19 changes, so it is a lot. Paul (Hartley) did say at the end of last season that he wanted to bring in fresh energy and younger legs. I am hoping that we can catch them before they all gel together. We’ve had seven in ourselves but from day one of pre-season. Getting six points after two matches would be a massive difference compared to last year when we only had one point.

“We know it won't be easy. Paul’s teams are always up for it and they are always hard to play against. They’ve had two good games against Hamilton Accies. Last weekend they scored a perfectly good goal that called offside but the lad was onside. There is nothing in it between us, Cove and Hamilton Accies.

“We believe we can come back with the points if we continue to defend well and keep scoring. We are scoring from all across the park and our numbers are great – but just ability itself won’t win this game. We’ve played away a good few times already thanks to our pre-season schedule so that has been helpful to us.”

Meanwhile, the boss confirmed that Jordan Allan will return to the squad after missing out due to a suspension carried over from last campaign. However, the game had came too soon for experienced duo Stephen McGinn and Gary Oliver, who will not be available.