GREENOCK Wanderers make the short trip up the M8 to Newton Mearns tomorrow where they face Whitecraigs in the sectional stages of the newly-revamped Scottish Cup.

The new format has been introduced this season and instead of a straight knock-out competition, teams will play in a league section with the winners progressing into the latter stages of the tournament.

Wanderers have been drawn alongside Whitecraigs, Dumfries Saints and Glasgow Hawks and the ties will be played over the forthcoming weeks in the run-up to Christmas.

Whitecraigs have held the upper hand over the locals in recent seasons but were fortunate to escape from Fort Matilda with a draw in the league match played earlier this term. The Newton Mearns outfit enjoyed a 54-point romp over hapless West of Scotland last weekend which will put them in fine fettle for tomorrow's clash.

Wanderers' excellent form since the sides' earlier meeting will give them confidence and the noticeable improvements made in recent weeks have been the catalyst to the club achieving a top four spot in the Royal Bank of Scotland League Championship Division A.

Head Coach Graham Finnie said: "We are still very much focused on winning every match but the tournament gives us the opportunity to try fresh ideas and to continue our objective of developing the team and individuals.

"We have added Anton Ward to the squad and he will be given game time as we look to blood some of our promising youngsters." Ward has been a stand-out for the Colts this season and has been rewarded for his fine form with selection to the Glasgow district under-18s squad for the forthcoming Inter-District Championship.

The Wanderers side will have a familiar look to it with changes kept to a minimum. Murray McDonald continues in the second row having replaced injured Jamie Mooney and James Kemp comes in on the wing to replace the unavailable Sean Connolly.

The pack will hope to seize the early initiative and controlled aggression will be the order of the day as skipper Ally Abernethy and his forwards aiming to dominate.

The Wanderers' eight have tangled with some of the top-rated packs in the league in recent weeks and have done themselves proud with some stirring performances.

From hooker Stewart Alexander in the front row to Callum Robb in the back row, the pack has collectively and individually shone in all aspects of forward play and another consistent display tomorrow will go a long way to getting Wanderers' cup campaign off to a winning start.

Wanderers' back line will be anxious to get a regular supply of possession in order to ask questions of the Whitecraigs defence. Strike runners Brendan McGroarty and Kieren Smith are marked men these days, but the problem for opposing defences is that Leigh Tyley, Ant Devlin and former Whitecraigs player James Kemp are also elusive runners and capable of carrying a serious threat in their own right.

Defences who focus too much on Wanderers' highly-rated centre pairing risk leaving gaps for the others to exploit.

The onus for orchestrating the effort will once more fall to half-backs Andy McDougall and Callum Harrison.

Their calm authority will be tested to the utmost tomorrow but if the forwards afford them sufficient protection then they will ensure that the Wanderers repertoire of attacking moves is given full reign. A cracking cup-tie is in prospect and in truth the result is too close to call. Both sides are equally matched but Wanderers have added the vital ingredient of self-belief to their game in recent weeks and that may just prove to be the deciding factor.

The travelling support from Greenock should be aware that the match kicks-off 2pm.

l Wanderers are sponsored by Texas Instruments.