Season 2016/17 gets underway this Friday night with a Betfred Cup tie against Partick Thistle at New Broomfield. 

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Five new faces in the Ravenscraig changing room took time out from training to speak to airdriefc.com this week, as we asked #AreYouReady?

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With one day to go till the big kick off, we catch up with striker Iain Russell...

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HOW DID YOUR MOVE TO AIRDRIE COME ABOUT?
Queen of the South offered me another year, but when I heard Airdrie were going full-time I contacted Jim Ballantyne to see if there was a chance of coming here, because I was desperate to play for Airdrie. Kevin McBride got in touch and after speaking to him it was just a case of sorting everything out.

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DO YOU HAVE ANY PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE OF AIRDRIE?
I grew up watching Airdrie in the 90s, so I’ve got a lot of good memories of going to Broomfield. Winning the two Scottish Cup semi-finals to get to finals against Rangers and Celtic, and although we got beat they were still great days for the club. I was mascot three times as well!

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WHAT ARE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THE CLUB?
It’s great – obviously it’s difficult going from part-time to full-time, we lost almost a full squad, but the 20s were successful last season and a lot of them have come in full-time now. Pre-season has been promising, and hopefully we can hit the ground running in the league.

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WHAT WILL YOU BRING TO THE TEAM?
I’m a winner. As soon as I knew the club were going full-time, it was me who made the phone call – winning the league with Airdrie would be a dream come true. Obviously I’ve got enthusiasm and I work hard, and hopefully I’ll get goals as I’ve been in double figures every season that I’ve played senior football.

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WHAT ARE YOUR PERSONAL AIMS FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON?
I’ve never done goal targets because you can become selfish. I’d like double figures, even playing in midfield with Queen of the South I got my 15 goals a season. If I didn’t get 15 I’d be disappointed but I won’t set a target in case I become greedy like Chucky!

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WHAT ARE YOUR AMBITIONS FOR THE TEAM AS A WHOLE?
I came here to win the league. I think the transition to full-time will need to bed in, but my aim is to win the league this season. It’s going to be hard, but it’s probably better that way than being favourites.