Airdrie 'will attack Championship teams' says No.2, as he eyes season ahead

Airdrie player-assistant boss Callum Fordyce says the Diamonds will attack the Championship this season, as they prepare for their first season back in the second tier of Scottish football in a decade.

The club captain helped them win promotion in May with the dramatic penalty shootout win over Hamilton Accies, ending years of play-off pain and promotion near-misses.

In August, the club will kick-off their new league campaign and Fordyce insists they won’t be holding back just because they have stepped up a level.

The Diamonds will be in a division that includes big hitters Dundee United, following their relegation from the Premiership, ambitious Queen’s Park and a Partick Thistle side who missed out on promotion to the top flight on penalties against Ross County.

Former Livingston star Fordyce, now entering his fifth season with Airdrie, said: “It is always a big challenge as soon as you step up a league.

“I have been lucky enough that I’ve played the majority of my career in the Championship.

“I’m looking forward to getting back there and I’m delighted that we’ve been able to take the club there.

“Every team in the Championship, I think, wants to consolidate in the league and then what happens after happens.

“But, first and foremost, you have to go with intent and take the game to teams.

“We aren’t going to be a team who sits back and defends all the time.

“With the players we’ve got and the way we play, we want to go and attack, so it will be exciting.

“But it is about making sure we get things right now in pre-season to go and progress.”

The Diamonds have held onto most of the successful squad from last season under boss Rhys McCabe, with a few new additions so far, and Fordyce added: “Continuity was one of the main