Leighton McIntosh insists Cove Rangers will need all of their squad as they gear up for a crucial period in their season.
Cove manager Paul Hartley has tried to make changes over the last couple of games to keep bodies fresh, with McIntosh coming off the bench to score against Rangers B in the midweek Challenge Cup win.
The Aberdeen side face Dumbarton on Saturday, their Scottish Cup replay against Queen of the South on Tuesday and then a trip to Falkirk the following weekend.
As Cove continue to fight on all fronts, they will need all hands on deck.
McIntosh said: “I’d say we’ve got an extremely strong squad and we’re going to need everybody. Boys are fighting for places for the starting 11 which increases competition. We need to keep at as high a standard as we can.
“I didn’t care how it came, I was just pleased to get a goal. It’s been frustrating over the last few weeks being in and out and when you get chances, you need to take them. I’m glad I did.
“We’re sitting in a very good position and we’ve done the hard part in getting there. We want to try protect that and take it a game at a time.
“It’s a massively important period. We’ve seen in previous seasons things can change very quickly; a good run of games can put you in a great position for the end of the season.”
McIntosh scored his first goal in four months on Tuesday night, putting the icing on the cake of a polished team performance against Rangers’ youngsters.
It guaranteed them a place in the semi-final of a national cup for the first time. Queens will again be the visitors at the Balmoral Stadium when the last-four ties are played in March, after their win over Morton on Wednesday.
McIntosh added: “It’s brilliant, regardless of what cup it is. It’s more about winning consistently, which we’ve been doing.
“There’s always things we can improve on, in terms of conceding goals, but we’re not getting beat just now and we want to build on that.
“We want to take performances like that into the league, which is probably our main priority just now.”