Hamilton accies boss challenges side to prove relegation wasn't deserved

JOHN RANKIN IS ITCHING TO GET BACK TO WORK AND SHOW WHAT ACCIES CAN DO 06:00, 30 May 2025 Hamilton Accies boss John Rankin has told his players to show hunger and desire and prove they

didn’t deserve to be relegated to League One. Rankin has a core squad of 14 players that he’s starting with this summer at their temporary home at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld, and wants

their base to be sorted out as quickly as possible. The Accies gaffer hopes to set up four pre-season friendlies, starting at Lowland League club Caledonian Braves on June 20, ahead of the

Premier Sports Cup kicking off, but is conscious they can’t be at ‘home’ as the Broadwood pitch is replaced. Rankin is also mindful that relegation via a 15-point deduction is very much in

players’ minds. Rankin said: “It’s building a squad and a team that are mindful of where we’ve been this season. As I said to the players, they finished seventh in the league, and we need to

make sure that we pick up the pieces and make sure we’re hungry enough to be able to challenge at the top end of the table and get ourselves back into the Championship as quickly as we

possibly can. “I think if you speak to any group of players or manager who has been demoted to a league that they don’t feel they deserve to be in, that there’s a hunger or a desire to put

that right, and I think we need to do that as a group. Article continues below “Players and staff all believe in what we’re trying to do, and a big season lies ahead. “There’s uncertainty

out there that people speak about, and the downside for me as the manager just now, is that I want to get contact with the players as quickly as possible. “After the season that they had,

and obviously near the end, when all sorts of stuff was kicking off, you want it to end on a break and a holiday, whereas I just want to try and get back to work, make sure we can put things

right, get ourselves organised.” Rankin added: “We’re in a new facility, a new environment we’re going to need to work from, and we need to figure it out as quickly as possible – how it

works, how the different dynamics of it work, and make sure we get it all running smoothly as quickly as possible. “I know that’s what pre-season is for, but I almost want it done pre

pre-season, so I know exactly what we’re going into, and I’ve got it prepared for the players arriving on the first day of pre-season on June 18.” READ MORE: Hamilton Accies boss

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off Sean McGinty and Nikolay Todorov have exercised relegation clauses in their contracts, but Rankin says there’s a strong feeling of togetherness amongst those remaining. He said: “Players

haven’t re-signed yet, there’s still some in negotiations. Right now, from what I’m working off of, I believe we have 14 that are guaranteed, that have said they want to be here, and that

we’re keeping. “I have the nucleus of a decent squad, and I want to build on that and make it as strong as I can, so that’s what I’m working towards doing. “Sean indicated straight away that

he wanted to move on, and that’s fine. “Those conversations I then had with the rest of the players, I told them Sean wanted to move on, so I was honest with them from the beginning. “I had

some who said straight away ‘I want to be here’ so for me those are the ones I wanted to try and keep, and we got them tied up. “There’s nothing better for a manager than hearing that a

player wants to be there, and take that battle on. “We now need to assemble a squad, and make sure the ones we bring in complement the ones that we already have here.” Article continues

below On games, Rankin said: “I’ve been fortunate where a lot of managers have reached out and are looking for games, so we only have one date available, now. “The downside of that is we

don’t have anywhere we can play pre-season games at home because the pitch at Broadwood is getting torn up and replaced.”