Edinburgh City can close gap on Queen's Park insists Marc Laird

And that is why there have been a few eyebrows raised as three of their seven League Two fixtures this season have ended in defeat for the Citizens.

However, back-to-back victories over Annan and Albion Rovers have propelled the club up to third ahead of Saturday’s trip to Hampden to play hosts, and current table-toppers, Queen's Park.

Laird, 34, whose CV includes Manchester City, Millwall and Tranmere among others, believes Scottish football's fourth tier is shaping up to be a hotbed of competition.

"Looking at how the league is even at this early stage, it's certainly competitive," Laird said. "The teams all seem to be beating one another where as last year ourselves and Cove were beating any team that came before us.

"Queen's Park have splashed the money and are now a full-time club so theoretically they should be fitter and everything that comes with it. Stenhousemuir have strengthened a lot, Elgin are doing well so I think it's going to be a really tight league in comparison with seasons gone by.

"We've got nothing to fear tomorrow. You've got to show them the respect they deserve but we've got a lot of talent as well. We're a confident group going into the game and we're coming off the back of two really good wins and scoring goals as well which is important.

"They are in the driving seat at the moment but there are still a lot of points up for grabs. The gap is seven points at the moment so we have the incentive to close that to four with a win.

"Every time I've played at Hampden the surface has always been really good so it's always a venue I enjoy going to. It will allow us to get the ball down and play our game."

Laird didn't feature in the win over Albion six days ago but is hoping to get the nod from manager James McDonaugh this weekend.

"I've had a few niggles here and there with my hamstring this season but I feel good," Laird explained. "I didn't play last weekend but have had a couple of good training sessions this week so I'll be ready to go tomorrow if selected.

"If the manager decides to stick with the same team then that's his choice and we have to respect that as players. I've been in football long enough and you know when there's been a good result managers will often stick with the same team.

"We've got a good group. We're all on the same wavelength, there are no big-time Charlies and we all enjoy coming to training.

"I think our last two wins have helped a lot because of the last few years where we've been so used to winning most weeks. This season has been the first time we've lost back-to-back games in a few years."