BY IAIN COLLIN – @CCP_sport
Kyle Benedictus insists fatherhood has been like child’s play – but knows taking points off Queen of the South tonight will not be quite as straightforward.
The Raith Rovers defender has a six-month-old son, Max, with partner Raegan and claims he has not suffered too many sleepless nights as he has juggled his duties as a dad with life as a footballer.
But, while the 24-year-old’s family life has been plain sailing so far, Benedictus is eager for Rovers to ease themselves out of a difficult spell when they travel to Palmerston Park for tonight’s fixture.
The Stark’s Park men have not won their last five league games and have lost late equalisers in their last two against Dumbarton and St Mirren, but are hoping their Scottish Cup victory over Elgin City on their last outing can kick-start a revival.
Benedictus explained: “I’ve just had a wee one, Max, he’s six months old, and he takes up a lot of my time.
“He’s great, I’ve not had many sleepless nights. He’s as happy as Larry and he only gets up once a night, so it’s not too bad.
“I’m fine with the nappies as well. A lot of people warned me it was going to be a lot tougher and I thought it was going to be the worst.
“But he’s brand new, so it’s happy days for me.
“If he doesn’t give me sleepless nights and we do well in the league then everything will be fine.
“But don’t tell my partner, Raegan, she might want another one!”
Confident
Benedictus was the match-winner when the sides met in Kirkcaldy back in September and just two points separate them in the league as they both eye a promotion play-off spot this season.
And Benedictus believes games like tonight’s are the ones Raith must try and take maximum points from if they are to achieve their goals.
The former Dundee stopper said: “Every game’s difficult in this league, no matter what, but I’m confident in our home games, we’ve been steady at home throughout the season.
“It’s just about these away games and if we can go and pick up the points against certain teams then hopefully that will make a difference.
“I do think Queens and Morton will be up there, so, that’s the teams you want to be beating. Obviously, Rangers and Hibs are bonus games and you get something if you can.
“But the teams round about you in the league, that’s the teams you need to be taking points off.”
Rovers hope to have Lewis Toshney, Grant Anderson and James Craigen free from niggles that could have kept them out for the clash with Rangers last Saturday had it gone ahead.
And manager Ray McKinnon is optimistic his side can boost their top-four ambitions with a positive result – even if their pre-match build-up may not go according to plan.
He said: “In practical terms, the travelling’s going to be a bit chaotic because there’s flooding down in that region and with the Forth Road Bridge being closed as well. We’ll just have to cope.
“I don’t read too much into individual games, it’s about what we do over the course of the season, but if we can get a victory it would set us up nicely.
“We definitely want to get something out of the game but I would be happy if we went down there and played the way we’ve been playing, because if we do we’ve got a great chance of winning the game.”
