Cove Rangers midfielder Ryan Strachan is desperate to get back fit in time for the start of the new season after the Highland League champions were handed an exciting Betfred Cup draw.
Strachan was unable to feature in the SPFL pyramid play-off defeat against Cowdenbeath after rupturing ankle ligaments towards the end of the season.
The Aberdeen side will have chance to gain revenge after the sides were drawn together in Group C of the Betfred Cup along with Hearts, Caley Thistle and Raith Rovers.
Cove had three players sent off in their 3-2 second leg defeat at Central Park and Strachan does not expect the next meeting between the teams to be a dull affair.
He said: “Whether the Cowdenbeath tie is down there or up here it will definitely be a feisty game.
“It will give us a chance to get a wee bit of revenge, even though it won’t be as good as a win in the pyramid play-offs would have been.
“The whole draw for us is brilliant.
“We can hopefully enjoy a few good trips and it will be really good experience for some of the boys who haven’t been to grounds such as Tyncastle, Caledonian Stadium or Stark’s Park.
“We will have two games at home and it would be great if we could get Hearts away and Cowdenbeath at our new home Balmoral Stadium.
“If we get Hearts away, I think it gives us a better chance of having Cowdenbeath at home.
“I really like this competition. It’s an excellent format at the start of the season and it gives us the chance to compete against some really good sides.”
Strachan is hoping that a good rest over the next few weeks will aid his recovery.
He added: “The Betfred Cup starts on July 14, that’s not long away. Hopefully I can come back flying at the start of the pre-season build-up.
“We still don’t know when the suspensions Paul McManus, Scott Ross and Eric Watson picked up for getting those late red cards in the last game against Cowdenbeath will kick-in.
“We expect it will be in the league games at the start of the new season. If that’s the case all three would hopefully be available to play for us in the Betfred Cup, which would be a real bonus.”