Source: Team_Talk
Smith braced for tough Celtic test
Mowbray faces his first clash against Rangers since taking over from Gordon Strachan but, as Smith points out, the Hoops boss is far from a rookie as far as the famous fixture is concerned, having come up against Rangers on several occasions as a player with Celtic.
"Tony Mowbray and Peter Grant have had the benefit of being players in an Old Firm environment," he said.
"It's not as though they are coming into the Old Firm games as strangers even though it is their first managerial game.
"The experience they have as players will help them going into Sunday's game."
Smith does not anticipate too different a challenge from the ones he faced against Celtic last season when the two teams meet again this time around, claiming Mowbray has not yet been able to stamp his own mark on the team he inherited in the summer.
"I don't think Tony will have had the time yet," he said.
"It's only been a few months and, when you have new ideas and are trying to integrate new players, it takes a bit of time to get your ideas over.
"They have one or two new players who have come into the side but I don't think they are vastly different from the way they played under Gordon Strachan."
Ultimately, though, Smith insists the outcome will depend on the players regardless of the team-talk before the first whistle.
"It's a big game and there is always a lot of nervousness and a lot of tension," he said.
"That's why a lot of the time you are dependent on how your players handle the game as much as anything else.
"As managers we can lay out a plan and do what we want but, in an Old Firm game, with the pressure that is on everyone, it's the players who have to handle that.
"Hopefully our players are experienced enough now to handle that situation."
