Malky Mackay insists Ross County have every right to believe they can compete for the Viaplay Cup – because history is on their side.
Ahead of Wednesday night’s home quarter-final against Aberdeen, the Staggies manager only needs to look at the walls of the Global Energy Stadium to remind himself nothing is impossible.
That is because, under Jim McIntyre and Billy Dodds in March 2016, County went all the way to Hampden and lifted the League Cup by beating Hibs in the final, having knocked out Celtic in the semis.
Such glory is still a long way away, especially against the backdrop of County losing 4-0 against Aberdeen in the Premiership at Pittodrie on Sunday.
Holders, and last year’s treble-winners, Celtic, are already out of the cup after losing to Kilmarnock in round two, which opens a window of opportunity for others.
Mackay led unfancied, second-tier Cardiff City to the English League Cup final in 2012 where they were a penalty shoot-out defeat away from stunning Liverpool.
And he is urging the Staggies to rise to the challenge against Aberdeen in Dingwall and book their berth in a Hampden semi-final.
He said: “County have done it before. It’s funny, because it’s on the wall – there’s a lovely big picture as I walk up the stairs every day.
“It was years ago, and I don’t know many people (who are) in the picture, but there is such happiness at seeing Ross County lifting one of Scotland’s national trophies.
“It was an incredible achievement.
“The fact that it’s not going to be Celtic against Rangers in the final – as much as sponsors generally will hate that – a lot of people who aren’t Celtic or Rangers fans love that.
“If a draw works out that someone gets to a final that maybe generally wouldn’t, that’s special.
Cardiff City’s run to final was ‘magic’
“At Cardiff, we got to the Carling Cup final, and the final four balls in the hat were Liverpool, Manchester City, Crystal Palace and Cardiff – two Premier League teams and two Championship teams.
“Everyone was praying that the balls came out the way they wanted, but they came out the way we wanted, which meant a Championship team was getting to a final.
“Sometimes the way these things go means that there is a path created, and that gets players to something that invariably they will never have again in their whole career.
“They are magic moments in football careers. Win or lose, you want to be out there, and I look back at that final with Cardiff which we lost on penalty kicks and think what an experience that was, even though I was devastated at the time.
“I tell players to take these achievements over, because they are gone in the blink of an eye. You can think you will go again next year, but it’s naive.
“If you get to a cup final, or if you win a league, that might be the only thing you win in your whole career, so take it in.
“That’s an extra driver for us – beating Aberdeen on Wednesday night and getting to a semi-final at Hampden, which would be a huge occasion.”
Hampden was early-season target for County
County topped their Viaplay Cup group this season, ahead of Morton, Kelty Hearts, Stranraer and Edinburgh.
In round two, they dug deep to see off determined Championship hosts Airdrieonians 4-3 after extra-time.
Mackay wanted his players to aim for reaching the national stadium and the last four at least, and they are now one win away from that goal.
He said: “It’s certainly something I’ve been very conscious of speaking to them about since day one of the Viaplay Cup.
“I want us to have a good charge this year. I’ve spoken about what happened in year one (cup campaign ruined by Covid in the County camp), and in year two we obviously got Celtic in the second round.
“We’ve got to a point now where we’re 90 minutes from Hampden, and right at the start of the season, when I was trying to get players to move up here, I was talking about going to play at Hampden for the first time in their careers to get that notch in their belt.
“It’s exciting, and as a player it’s one of those moments you just love.
“It should be the same for them now that we’ve got this game on Wednesday night and there’s the excitement of being 90 minutes away from playing at Hampden in a semi-final.”
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