Paisley Pirates face another difficult match this weekend when they go head to head with Aberdeen Lynx in the second leg of their Scottish Cup Quarter Final at Braehead this Sunday (face off 6.00pm). The Renfrewshire side go into the contest holding a slim 3-2 advantage gained in a penalty filled encounter last Saturday in Aberdeen.

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“It’ll be another testing fixture for us, we seem to be on a diet of them right now,” said coach Ian Turley, “but I suppose it’s much better than taking part in meaningless games with nothing at stake. The first leg was very entertaining, with goals, hard hits, and a few toe to toe encounters which led to several early showers, and I don’t think for a minute that the second leg will be any different. We’ve played the Lynx three times already this year, and the results have been two one goal wins and a draw, so you would suspect Sunday’s game will be along similar lines, with very little to choose between the teams over the three sessions of play..”

“Anybody thinking we’re halfway into the semis already, I’m telling them to forget it-we expect nothing less than 60 minutes of flat out action and once again we will need to play to the top of our form, as the Lynx are capable of beating anyone else in the SNL. They’re challenging at the top of the league and I’m sure they will try throw everything at us right from the off.”

He went on, “I said before last Sunday’s game that Dundee Comets had improved radically since we played them at their place at the start of the season and I think that was plain to see for everyone who was there. They had two ex Elite League players in John Dolan and Adam Walker playing for them and it showed, but again they had a lot of very good players in their ranks like Lewis Gold, and while you’re always disappointed not to win, especially at home, a draw was probably a fair result.”

“With the exception of one game, our players deserve a huge amount of credit for the work they’ve been putting in this season, and particularly since the turn of the year. They’ve been playing through injuries and illness, and the last week in particular has demonstrated that willingness to put themselves on the line for the club. They had a late night training session during the week, then a drive to and from Aberdeen for a very hard game, they got back in the early hours of Sunday morning, then went out and played again on Sunday night in another important game. It’s a tough schedule for anyone to contend with, and add into the bargain that the boys work full time and have family commitments which are things we tend to forget about when the guys are struggling with fatigue. I’m very proud of them because they’ve demonstrated to me their desire to play for this club and I think it’s important that they get the credit they deserve in this respect. Supporters don’t really see the hard work and preparation which goes into getting ready to play one game, never mind two, in a weekend and don’t realise just how much these guys sacrifice to play for the Pirates.”

“This week, however, we have a break from the rigours of league competition so the focus will be entirely on getting past the Lynx and gaining a place in the Scottish Cup semi final, Once again I can only exhort Pirates’ fans and, indeed, any neutrals to get along and watch what promises to be a cracker of a game. At £8, I think I can safely say they’ll get plenty of value for their admission price!”