Read every word of McCallum's press conference ahead of tomorrow's Glasgow Cup Final clash with Celtic.

What would it mean to you to get your hands on the cup?

We’ve got an opportunity to play a cup final at Ibrox in an Old Firm, so I think everybody is looking forward to it. You talk about winning a cup final, but we are there and now it’s about getting our hands on it. That’s going to come off the back of performing properly and we know the level we can reach. But we also recognise that if we don’t get it right then they can be a threat as well. 

It’s a shame that supporters won’t be there as this is the proving ground for players?

Absolutely. We are talking about getting over the bridge from academy player to first-team level and part of that is the experience of playing in front of fans. There will be 4000 tomorrow and there were 6-7,000 when we played in the league last time. It’s great for the players to experience that because it’s different and you feel the support. You also feel the challenge when the support isn’t with you. There’s a split tomorrow and hopefully, our fans will give us support and the players will give them something to enjoy. 

How much is silverware part of a player's development? 

Every experience that a player gets is important to them. We can focus on how we get to that point, performance of individuals and the style of play. We believe when we get those levels right then we are in a good place to do that. We are in a cup final and every player in that dressing room will feel the nerves but we want to go and win. 

You talk about bridging the gap between academy football and first-team level - what are the main differences? 

Our first team played Champions League football this season and were in a European final the season before, so there is a big gap. You’re talking about getting technical, elite players who can handle the ball at the speed of first-team players. The first experience of that comes from training with those guys and they feel that. First-team players tend to realise when those young players can do that and they speak about it. We want the technically elite ones because they can cope better but then there are so many factors. Every journey isn’t the same and it’s not a one size fits all but it’s the experience of so many factors that will hopefully help them bridge the gap.

In terms of academy players training with the first team, is that one of the benefits that people perhaps don’t appreciate from the outside? 

People see the game days and a lot of conversation comes off the back of that. But you’re right, if you’ve got five training days and players have an opportunity to train with the first team during that spell then they get to build up the picture of who they are - building their profiles for players and staff to see. Gamedays are great but outside the training ground, people won’t see what the players do in training and with the first team. 

How do you assess the development of your players from their experiences in the Lowland League against senior sides? 

Every game is different. We want the best programme to challenge our players to the highest level and get them to reach the first team - it’s really difficult to get into the Rangers first team. Some games have challenged us really well and some games are different. It isn’t just the Lowland League, we experienced the UEFA Youth League and some top, top games. We look at the programme across the season and look at what games have been the most beneficial. 

In terms of the Conference League, what could that bring?

We want our players to be challenged at the best level - that will always be the driver. We have a responsibility to develop every player in our programme and that’s our challenge as coaches. Whichever games programme that ends up being, as long as it’s the one that challenges our players most often - sometimes struggle because you need to see stressful moments and games that we are dominant. All we are driven by is giving our players the best individual and team programme, so they can develop to become part of the manager’s squad. 

Can you understand why some clubs are unhappy about it and how it’s come to pass? 

It’s difficult for me to say. Every club has their own opinion on how Scottish football should run, that’s, unfortunately, the environment we are in. Obviously, the ones who make the decision make it for the greater good of the players - and not just the players at Rangers. If you’re a development coach then all you want to do is give players the best journey and the best chance to be a top, top player.