BY IAIN COLLIN – Capital City Press
Lewis Toshney knows what it takes to play for and against Celtic, and has urged Raith Rovers to make the most of tonight’s League Cup clash at Parkhead.
Toshney made just a single appearance in four years with the Hoops before leaving last year and is revelling in the prospect of meeting up with a few old pals on his return.
And the 23-year-old believes his excitement is a feeling that has spread throughout the Rovers squad as they prepare for what he insists is a pressure-free trip to Glasgow.
He said: “I can’t wait to go back to Celtic. I’ll see some familiar faces and I’m looking forward to the game. A lot of the boys who were there when I was there are still there, so you’ve got boys like Scott Brown and Charlie Mulgrew, and I’m quite close with James Forrest as well.
“It’s a big experience. I’m not sure if everyone’s played at Parkhead before, so we’ll be up for it and it will be a great occasion. It won’t a be a full house, but it will still be a good crowd and the boys will relish going there to play.
“But we’ve got nothing to fear, there’s no pressure on us. People will be expecting us to get beat, but we’ll go there and give it our all and hopefully come away with a positive result.
“We know it’s going to be tough, but we’re buzzing for it.
“Some players might not get another chance to play at Parkhead, so you’ve got to go and take the chance to enjoy it.
“It will be a great night for the boys and one to look back on, and hopefully we can do that having earned a result.
“I honestly think we’ll give them a good game. There’s a big buzz about the dressing room, and we’re all looking forward to it, so fingers crossed.”
Raith will head west buoyed by their 2-1 victory over St Mirren on Friday night, but would have every right to be struck with some trepidation following Celtic’s 6-0 thrashing of Dundee on Sunday.
However, Toshney, who secured a goalless draw at Parkhead with Ross County last season, insists the Fifers will simply try to enjoy themselves the best they can.
He added: “It’s a massive task we face, it’s going to be really hard, but the boys are flying. We got a great result on Friday night and we’ll be looking forward to going there.
“They got a good result at Ajax and then they beat Dundee 6-0, and people have told me it should have been more.
“But we’ll go there with no pressure on us. All the pressure is on them, and we’ll just look forward to going and playing at Parkhead.”
@IainCollin
