Caley Thistle captain Gary Warren insists his side will be ready for the new campaign despite a poor second-half showing at Elgin City on Saturday.
The Championship newcomers’ preparations for the new season suffered a setback at Borough Briggs where League 2 side Elgin ran out comfortable 2-0 winners.
Caley Jags manager John Robertson labelled his side’s display in the second half embarrassing and Warren knows his team has to improve.
He said: “It’s lucky this happened in a pre-season game but we need to iron it out quickly as we have an important game against Brechin and we want to start well, get through our group in the Betfred Cup and then build from there.
“The players coming in have to understand we’re building and it is important we have the right mindset in every game we play.
“We’ve got a few new players and we’re trying to bed them in, develop and understanding between the players and I expect we’ll spend the next week working on that.
“Every game is important and we go out wanting to win. It’s good for fitness and trying new things but we want wins and we were not good enough against Elgin.”
Robertson is trying to play a more expansive style than predecessor Richie Foran and Warren hopes the Betfred Cup, which begins on Saturday with a home pool game against Brechin, can bring an improved display.
He said: “We went into the Betfred Cup flying last year and we have to do that again. Last year we went a little bit more direct but this year we’ll try to play out from the back when we can. When opposition teams press we need to have other options.
“I don’t know a lot about the Championship. People say it will be more physical but they won’t be any more physical than Moussa Dembele. We have to stamp our mark on the season from the start.”
Robertson has scheduled a friendly for tomorrow night against Clach. Former Falkirk and Swansea forward Darryl Duffy, who played as a trialist at Elgin, is expected to feature against the Highland League side.