BY IAIN COLLIN – @CCP_sport
Kevin Cuthbert is excited by the prospect of another cut-throat promotion play-off push – but insists Raith Rovers cannot afford to look beyond this evening’s clash with Hibs.
The Stark’s Park keeper helped Hamilton Accies win promotion to the Premiership – and relegate Hibs – in a dramatic play-off final in 2014.
The 33-year-old produced pivotal saves from Kevin Thomson and Jason Cummings in a tension-filled penalty shoot-out after Accies had recovered from a 2-0 first-leg deficit to win by the same score at Easter Road.
Should Rovers manage to hang on to their current fourth spot, Cuthbert insists anything could happen in the ‘carnage’ of a nervy play-off campaign.
But, despite enjoying a seven-point advantage – and a game in hand over Morton in fifth – with just eight games remaining, Cuthbert has cautioned the Kirkcaldy outfit against getting ahead of themselves and losing sight of first clinching fourth.
Cuthbert, who is in the early stages of negotiating a new contract for next season, said: “We are where we want to be at this minute but we can only focus on one game at a time.
“I have been in this position before when I was at Hamilton going for the top of the league with Dundee and Falkirk around us.
“It was at the same stage of the season where you look at the fixtures and see who the other teams still have to play and where you have to go.
Focus
“But if you do that, you lose your focus on what you are doing yourself.
“We have Hibs on Saturday at home and we shouldn’t have any interest in what anybody else is doing.
“Naturally, you will start talking about (the play-offs), but there are eight games to go.
“I think when I was at Hamilton and going for the league, it was sometimes a case of, ‘What are Falkirk doing? What are Dundee doing? Who do they have tomorrow? Are they playing each other?.
“Maybe we had the bottom-of-the-league team at home and end up dropping points – but it cannot be like that.
“The most important thing is that we go out and do our jobs against Hibs.”
