Ross County midfielder Michael Gardyne reckons team-mate Liam Boyce will be chasing his scoring record.
Last season, Gardyne overtook Sean Higgins as the Staggies’ top scorer since the Dingwall club stepped up from the Highland League in 1994.
Gardyne’s goal in the League Cup final win against Hibernian at Hampden Park in March took him on to 61 goals for the Highlanders.
Attacker Boyce has netted 31 times in two seasons since joining from Cliftonville in 2014, with his form helping him become a regular in the Northern Ireland squad.
However Boyce was disappointed when he was left out of Michael O’Neill’s 23-man squad for the European championship finals in France this month.
Gardyne reckons Boyce will be eager to recover from this setback and, although he is targeting more goals of his own, he expects Boyce to be hot on his trail when the new season gets under way.
Gardyne said: “It would be nice to get another few goals for the club next season.
“It was good to get to 61 but I know Liam is catching me up. He’s a forward and I’m sure he’ll be keen to catch up on me when the action gets under way.”
Gardyne last month agreed a one-year extension to his contract with the Staggies, which will keep him at Victoria Park until 2018.
The Dundonian is in his fourth spell with the club but feels he has been given a new lease of life since being handed a wide role under manager Jim McIntyre.
Gardyne added: “I like that about the way we play. Not a lot of teams play with a lot of width.
“I was never a wide player until the manager asked me to play wide and I enjoy it.
“I’d always been through the middle, but this offers us something different.”