Falkirk hatch a plan to catch Hibs as Bairns plot path into European football conversation
The Bairns only need a point against Motherwell this weekend to secure a top half finish
John McGlynn believes the gap between his side and Hibs isn’t insurmountable as the Falkirk boss hopes to nail down a top six Premiership finish this weekend.
It’s been a dream start to life back in the big time for The Bairns, who earned promotion via the Championship last season. McGlynn’s side also remain in the Scottish Cup, where they will face Dunfermline Athletic at Hampden in the semi-final later this month. Despite overachieving so far this season, the former Hearts boss believes there is still a lot to play for in the league as he now targets the sides above them. Hibs currently sit five points ahead of Falkirk in the table and aren’t yet quite out of reach.
With just two fixtures left before the split, Falkirk are six points clear of seventh placed Dundee United, meaning if the Tangerines dropped points against Rangers this weekend, or The Bairns earned at least a point at Fir Park, they’d secure a top half finish.
Falkirk look to ‘chip away’ at Hibs lead
With Falkirk also boasting a much better goal difference than the Tangerines, a place in the top six is more than likely for McGlynn despite not yet being mathematically confirmed. However, the veteran gaffer doesn’t want to dilly-dally and give their Tayside rivals any encouragement. He also is now looking at closing the gap on Hibs going into the split.
McGlynn said: “We want to at least get a point to make it secure. But at the same time, it throws up new challenges. How far will we be behind Hibs with six games to go? Then hopefully with five games to go we’ll be in there, then we want to try and chip away at that point gap that there is between ourselves and Hibs.”
Falkirk will face Motherwell away and Rangers at home before the league breaks into two. While these may both be tough fixtures on paper, the Bairns are the only side in the country to have won at Fir Park this season and remain unbeaten against the Light Blues.
McGlynn assesses Falkirk star’s World Cup chances
Calvin Miller has been a standout at the Falkirk Stadium this season and has put himself in selection contention for Steve Clarke’s World Cup squad. However, the winger wasn’t chosen for Scotland’s recent friendlies against Japan and Ivory Coast. Scotland have had issues with depth on the flanks with Ben Gannon-Doak being the only current standout in this position. In turn, McGlynn hopes Clarke is considering giving Miller a chance.
He continued: “Calvin’s got flair and great pace. There are not that many real wingers kicking about. He’s got skill, he’s what you pay to see, and now he’s doing it at the top level. It’s just about maturing and getting a bit of confidence. It’s about getting people to believe in you and giving you the platform to go and produce the goods. Calvin would give you a lot of options because you can play him either side, he’s got great delivery. I’m sure he was in Steve Clarke’s thoughts. When you look at it, we’ve not got an awful lot to change games there. If you want to go with wingers, it’s pretty difficult.”