Don Cowie looks for Cardiff City spirit and character as new Ross County interim manager awaits Ibrox baptism against Glasgow Rangers
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Don Cowie was never part of a more unified and driven dressing room than at the peak of his powers with Cardiff City.
Having followed manager Malky Mackay from Watford to the Welsh capital, Cowie experienced some of his most thrilling times in football with the Bluebirds’ close-knit squad.
It included a penalty kicks defeat to Liverpool in the League Cup final, title success in the Championship and a season battling relegation in the Premier League.
If the 40-year-old can instil even half of the spirit of togetherness he savoured at Cardiff in County’s currently toiling squad, he will be happy.
It all starts with a baptism of fire tomorrow at Ibrox where, at least, nobody outside of Dingwall will give the Staggies much of a chance.
Cowie said: “We’re going down there with a few injuries – Jack Baldwin, Conor Randall, Scott Allardice and Will Nightingale.
“That just shows we need everyone. We need that togetherness and spirit.
“We’ll deal with it – it is just part and parcel of football.
“I played in a team at Cardiff who had no superstars, but I would say it was the most collective team I have played under.
“Because of that, we went on to win the Championship. That’s what can happen when you are all pulling in the same direction.
“You’re always the underdog going away to Rangers or Celtic. At Ross County, that’;s something we’re accustomed to,
We’ve proven in the past we can cause upsets. We’ll look to have a gameplan that causes the opposition problems.”
County have certainly caused Rangers problems down the decades, but unlike their five victories over Celtic, have never beaten the Govan side in 23 attempts.
Under Philippe Clemente, Rangers seem far less vulnerable to upsets than in the past few seasons, but Cowie – assisted by Caley Thistle legend Carl Tremarco – stressed: “Can Rangers still be got at? Of course they can.
“Every team can be got at. We fully understand they are an excellent team on a great run.
“However, we’ll go there with a structure and gameplan to try and cause them problems. As well.
“It’s a difficult challenge, but it’s one we have got to embrace and be ready for.
“It’s up to me to make sure the players have a structure and a plan going into the game.
“It’s going to be difficult.
“We will suffer at times within the game – it's only natural when you go to the big teams in this league.
“It’s about how we adapt to that and how we deal with those situations. We also need to make sure we are a threat against them as well.”
