Danny Lennon feels Hamilton will be out to prove a point in Saturday’s Scottish Cup tie in Paisley, following their relegation from the SPL last season.

Whilst the Buddies have made significant progress after edging the relegation battle with Accies last season, Billy Reid’s men have failed to mount a challenge for an instant return to the top flight.

Despite Accies trailing leaders Ross County by 14 points in the First Division table, Lennon is wary of the quality that Billy Reid still has at his disposal.

He said: “They are renowned for their passing game and the quality youngsters they have produced.

"Hamilton certainly have quite a lot of the same personnel as they did in the SPL so we know we've got to be at our best if we want to progress.

"The SPL is the place to be and they will be hurting.”

The Lanarkshire club have struggled for consistency this season and sit just six points off the bottom of the table.

Lennon will be warning his side against complacency against a side who have had their fair share of decent results in an otherwise disappointing campaign so far.

He added: "They have been a bit inconsistent. They have had fantastic results, away to the runaway league leaders Ross County 5-1, they won at Dundee and Morton.

"They had a very good win on Monday, although it was their first win in six.

"They have experienced players, they will get amongst us and we need to be ready for the challenge."

The Paisley side sit eighth in the SPL table and Lennon will be looking to bolster his squad this month for a tilt at the top six, after the departures of Joe McKee and Illias Haddad.

“We'd like to thank wee Joe and Illias," Lennon said. "The two of them have been fantastic in terms of adding quality to the squad.

"Okay, they may not have got the opportunities they both had wished for. But the level of competition has kept the other ones on their toes and the other ones have produced from that.

"As for other players coming in, what we have to do is identify the ones who are going to make the difference and improve us as a squad."