Aaron Reid was an armchair spectator when Airdrie lifted the SPFL Trust Trophy back in March, but the big striker wants to fire the Diamonds back to cup glory after bagging his first goal for the club.

Liam McStravick and Nikolay Todorov got the goals when Airdrie beat The New Saints at the Falkirk Stadium to bring silverware to the club for the first time since 2009, but with the squad undergoing something of a summer overhaul, Reid is now among the new names in the scoring charts.

The 20-year-old reflected on his headed effort against Hamilton Academical last weekend, which sparked an unlikely comeback when the Diamonds had looked dead and buried at 2-0 down with ten minutes to play.

“I just thought I had to attack it, and thankfully it’s ended up in the back of the net! It’s kinda pushed us on to try and get something out the game, so it’s always a bonus to get on the scoresheet – and I’m delighted to get on it.

“Obviously I’ve been needing to score my first goal for a while now. I was out for coffee with Mason in the morning saying ‘I’m just needing that one to get me going’… then obviously it’s happened.

“After the second went in I think we could easily have won it, throughout the whole game I thought we deserved more than just a point.”

Fellow substitute Murray Aiken grabbed the 87th-minute equaliser at New Douglas Park, and the 2-2 scoreline put an end to a run of three defeats for Rhys McCabe’s side.

Reid wants to see more of the spirit which dug out the late point across Lanarkshire.

“We hadn’t scored for a couple of weeks beforehand, so now that we’ve got back to scoring ways again I think that’s going to give everyone a bit of a lift going forward.

“The boys have done well to react and come back from two down, to be fair, but I think we just need to start the game with that same intensity that we’ve been playing the final minutes. If we start with that mentality and intensity on Saturday we’ll be perfectly fine.”

The Diamonds now face a break from league duty as they look to retain the SPFL Trust Trophy, starting with a trip to Palmerston Park.

The Dumfries venue hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for Airdrie in recent years, but the squad can focus on a 2-0 victory over the Doonhamers in this season’s Premier Sports Cup group stage, Ben Wilson and Terrell Agyemang hitting the net in a win which saw the Diamonds through to the knockout stages.

A strong Dundee performance saw an end to the club’s participation in that competition, but Reid is looking to July’s result – and last season’s victorious run – as Airdrie begin their defence of the SPFL Trust Trophy against Peter Murphy’s side.

“I did watch the semi and the final, so I think I know what to expect. It’ll be the second time I’ve played in this competition, so I’m looking forward to getting started in it.

“A win would be a good way to start things off and hopefully keep the cup run going. We’re a lot sharper and fitter than we were when we played them the first time, and I’d imagine since they’re a full-time outfit as well, they’ll be exactly the same.

“I thought they were quite a good outfit when we played them, they were probably unfortunate not to maybe score a goal or two in that game, but I think we definitely deserved the win that day.”

Manager Rhys McCabe has fond memories of lifting the trophy at Falkirk last season, and of the jubilant scenes which followed.

“If you’re defending the trophy, you certainly want to go as far as possible. We had real success and real positive impact and effect from winning last year.

“About the club, about the community, and about the area, there was a real buzz about the place. That was generated through success in winning the trophy, so of course we’ll be going into the game with the mindset that we look to win and try to get as far as we can in the competition.

“Queen of the South tried to come here, make it stuffy and stifle us a wee bit, but our quality shone through in the end. We were pleased we were never under any real threat in the game.

“I fully expect it to be the same – there’s a bit of their side of the game where there’s no pressure. They’re expected to come up against a team in the league above, they’re at home, so there’s probably a sense of ‘no fear’.

“For us, it’s about making sure we approach the game with the right mentality, with the belief and the confidence to try to win the game away from home and hopefully put in a good performance to go with it.”

The Diamonds boss once again has selection headaches, with two further players awaiting decisions on recent knocks. Already missing are knee-injury victims Liam McStravick, Aidan Wilson, Dean McMaster and Craig Watson, and McCabe himself (calf). Murray Johnson is on international duty with Scotland’s U21 squad, but Lewis McGregor is expected to return to the squad following a full week of training.

Referee Lloyd Wilson is the man in the middle for his second Airdrie match this season, having already officiated July’s 4-3 win at Dumbarton.

Match tickets are available using the link below, and our DiamondsTV video and audio streams are available. As the match falls outwith the FA’s blocked hours, both streams are available without restriction on a pay-per-view basis.