Auchinleck Talbot winger Mark Shankland insists the junior outfit are dreaming of surpassing last season’s run to the last-16 of the Scottish Cup.
The Ayrshire side cleared the first round hurdle of competition with a convincing 3-0 victory at Lowland League counterparts Kelty Hearts in front of the BBC cameras on Friday evening.
Tommy Sloan’s side were eventually eliminated by Hearts in the fifth round last term, having stunned Ayr United en route, and Shankland insists the minnows believe they are capable of enjoying another extended run.
He said: “Last year was memorable, getting to the last 16 - and hopefully we can go one better.
“We know it’s going to be hard to achieve that but we’ll see what the competition brings.
“We can take confidence from last year, knowing any team we face we can go toe-to-toe with them and match them.
"We know we’re probably technically not better than any of the teams above but we’ve got players that can hurt you in dangerous areas and we’ve got guys who work hard for each other.”
Shankland crossed for Craig McCracken to head home after 20 minutes before completing the scoring five minutes after the restart by nodding in from close range.
Kier Samson had doubled Bot’s lead a minute before the break with an easy tap-in.
Shankland added: “It was a great win, we knew it was going to be tough going to Kelty and we didn’t expect it to be as comfortable as that.
“When we get the ball we normally make our chances count and hurt people and thankfully that’s what we did.
“It was pleasing to a goal and assist but as long as I can help the team get a victory that’s all that matters.”
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