LEANNE CRICHTON says her full focus is on Rangers ahead of the first Old Firm game of the season.
The Light Blues travel to New Douglas Park to take on Celtic on Sunday afternoon, with the new Head Coach getting her first taste of the fixture.
Crichton says her squad are ready to embrace the challenge but says preparations won’t be any different to what they were for last week’s game with Motherwell.
Speaking to the media, she said: “We are focused on Rangers and the job we do. We have respect for every opponent, and we will give them the same level of time as we prepare for Sunday.
“It is about what we do, right now, it is early in my tenure, but this is an opportunity to implement things we have been working on to grow and develop.
“I have been at Old Firm games in recent seasons. The hype and hysteria is the element that makes it different.
“The preparation for me has not changed and we have not done anything differently than we did against Motherwell or Hearts.
“I want consistency in how we prepare and analyse the opposition and how we reflect on past games and experiences we can take forward.
“My full focus will be on the players on the pitch and the ones who can come on. I am excited, the players are up for it and it is an opportunity to gauge where we are.
“I am really looking forward to it. The hysteria around the fixture, I get it.
“I am at the heart of it and I have to be level, composed and focused on the job and that’s all I, and the players can do.
“We will treat it with the respect it deserves, it is a huge fixture against one of our biggest rivals, but the reality is, it is three points and getting them is our focus.
“It is about Rangers and how we improve week on week, and the early signs are good.
“It’s not about me and my emotions. I will respect it, I am looking forward to it, we all are.”
Leah Eddie, Sarah Ewens and Laura Rafferty will all miss the fixture through injury.
The transfer window closes on Tuesday and Crichton says she is keen to add reinforcements to her squad.
She added: “Leah, Sarah and Laura are all still out, but other than that we have a full squad to choose from which is really good.
“We are working hard to try and bring one or two into the building to give us that strength and depth we will require.
“We came away last Sunday feeling we weren’t clinical enough, but that comes down to the demands we are putting on them.
“We are early in the season, and I think we will get better.”
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