DANNY SWANSON has leapt to the defence of the new-look Betfred League Cup.

And the St Johnstone winger is hoping to advance to the last eight at the expense of former club Hearts in Perth tonight.

The early season group format has attracted flak, with Rangers boss Mark Warburton among the critics.

But Swanson, who has already bagged three goals as he targets double figures for the campaign, said: “I have enjoyed the tournament so far. It has been a breath of fresh air.

“A lot of people are against it, including Rangers, but I’m not. It’s good to get the early competitive games and to come up against teams that we don’t play every year.

“I have quite liked going to Elgin where I hadn’t played since I was with Berwick years back. It was nice for a change.

“It was better for our preparation this year I’d say. We only had a couple of friendlies against Bradford and Manchester City and the preparations worked out fine because we got through the group stage.”

Swanson returned to McDiarmid earlier this year after a successful loan spell and brief period with the Tynecastle club, when he made just five starts under manager Robbie Neilson.

He said: “It just didn’t work out for me when I was there but I don’t regret going and giving it a bash.

“I never really got a run in the team, to be honest. But the manager makes the decisions in the end and I didn’t play.

“Look, these things happen. I’m not worried about it. I’ve moved on, forgotten about it already.

“It didn’t work out at Coventry either but I am back at St Johnstone and I am happy with the way I am playing – and with the team I am at. I don’t have anything to prove in Scotland.”

Swanson anticipates another physical challenge after a no-frills 0-0 league opener against Aberdeen.

He said: “The game with Aberdeen wasn’t pretty and I had a few texts from my mates saying it wasn’t the best match for the telly.

“But I quite enjoyed it and it was good to be involved in. It was a pretty physical game and in the end both teams were happy with a draw.

“I don’t think anybody wanted to lose it and that probably showed.

“You can see Aberdeen are a very physical team this season and I think we dealt with it absolutely fine. The same again will be needed for Hearts.

“I was very impressed with our defence. Looking along the backline, we are not huge but we competed for every ball and that was massive for us.

“Hearts are also a very physical team. Big Conor Sammon has come in up front and he’s a handful. All over the park they are a big outfit.

“But we will deal with it again and I don’t think they will enjoy coming to McDiarmid. Not many teams do.

“It is a hard draw for both teams after the group stages but we are confident we can get through.

“We reached the semi-finals last season. If we do win, we are into the quarters and who knows what happens from there because there are a few so-called lesser teams still in it.”