Victory tonight over The Blues would lift Arbroath into a three-way tie for second place along with tonight's rivals and Montrose.

Mr McGlashan forecasts a tricky encounter: "It will be a tough game as they are a good team who, like us, will be keen to make up ground on East Fife.

He continued: "Stranraer have a nice balance to their team. With a fully fit squad they have experience from higher divisions and the majority of their newer signings have came from full-time teams. What has impressed me most is that when a team is relegated it usually takes them a while to settle into a new division but Stranraer have shown good resilience to get on level terms quickly."

He added: "We can't afford to keep drawing at home. We might have to take a few more risks and if we don't get a result we will at least know that we gave it our best shot. We have had a couple of draws in a row at Gayfield and have to get a win now. Victory will give us a big lift as we go into the important December fixtures."

Talisman, Bryan Scott, returns from a three match ban. Bizarrely the last league game he played was also against Stranraer where he was sent off for his over zealous celebration after scoring a last-minute goal.

Mr McGlashan acknowledged: "Having Bryan back in the squad gives the players a lift and increases competition for places. Whether Bryan starts or is on the bench he will certainly feature at some stage barring any late injuries."