Liam Burt has warned against complacency as Glentoran kick-off their Clearer Water Irish Cup campaign away at Strabane Athletic on Saturday (Kick-off 1.30pm).

Confidence is sky high in the Glens camp after four wins on the bounce in the Sports Direct Premiership, including last weekend’s 7-0 thumping of Carrick Rangers.

The league takes a backseat this week as the topflight clubs enter the Clearer Water Irish Cup with Burt insisting the mentality has to be the same against their Premier Intermediate League opponents as Glentoran look to progress in the competition.

Liam Burt said: “There are always shocks in the cup and we have to make sure we go about our business in the right way so that we are in the draw for the next round.

“Strabane may be two leagues below us but they have earned their right to be here and we will give them the respect they deserve.

“The confidence in our squad is bubbling up at the minute given our results over the last few weeks and Saturday’s win at Carrick showed what we are all about.

“However, we cannot afford to give any less this week. The Irish Cup is an important competition for us and we will be determined to progress to the next round.”

Pat Hoban and Ryan Cooney grabbed all the headlines following the big win at Taylors Avenue as they went home with six goals and six assists respectively, but Burt showed what he is all about as he netted a superb first goal for the club to complete the rout.

Burt said: “It was nice to finally get up and running for the season, it’s a goal that will stick with me as well, not only because it is my first for Glentoran but as it capped off an incredible result and performance.

“I don’t need to tell anyone about Pat Hoban, he’s scored goals for years, but that was just a little reminder of the quality he possesses.

“If you give him an opportunity in front of goal he is deadly and you saw that even the Carrick boss Stephen Baxter recognised just how special that performance was by him.

 “You have to give Ryan so much credit as well. To get six assists in one game is incredible. He is such a asset to us defensively, but also a real threat going forward too.

 “It was a real team performance though. Everyone played their part, and you saw the hunger and desire to keep the clean sheet even when we were 7-0. It is so important to have that mentality and to keep working hard no matter what the score is, we all know we have a job to do.”

After four years in the League of Ireland Burt has settled into life in east Belfast with relative ease. The former Rangers man is looking to make his first season at The BetMcLean Oval at memorable as he targets a big second half of the campaign.

Liam added: “I enjoyed my time in the League of Ireland at Bohs, Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne, but moving to Glentoran was definitely the right move for me.

“This is a massive club with a fantastic history and you can feel that as soon as you walk through the doors.

“They haven’t had the success that they would have wanted over the past few years, but there is a sense that something is building.

“Declan and his staff work so hard to make sure we are in the best position we can be when we step out onto the pitch.

 “As players it has been great to reward them with some good performances over the last few weeks.

“We put the hard work in all week but we know that counts for nothing if we don’t produce it when it matters. We have to carry that into the games, and thankfully that’s what we’ve been doing of late.

“It has pulled us up the table which is great, but it’s only been four games. We know we need to produce every game if we are going to go on and achieve something this season.

“It’s only the start of January so there are a lot of opportunities for us in the weeks and months ahead. As a squad we are really excited by that and determined to make the most of them.”

Burt has also been impressed by the Glentoran fans since his arrival. The midfielder praised the support for their backing saying it doesn’t go unnoticed amongst the players and staff.

Burt concluded: “The fans have been superb and I cant understate how important that is to us.

“It’s obviously been a very busy period over Christmas with a lot of games, but the fans were out in their numbers to cheer us on.

“It’s so pleasing as players to be able to repay their loyalty with performances on the pitch. The Boxing Day win especially was a big one for us all and it wasn’t lost on us players.

“I know they will be restricted in their numbers against Strabane on Saturday but I’ve no doubt those who do make the trip will make themselves heard as always.

“It’s up to us as players to make sure it’s an enjoyable trip and send them home happy by progressing to the next round of the Irish Cup.

“We are determined to give them more big days between now and the end of the season. That is the desire in the squad and staff, we want to make sure that continue to work hard and see those results out on the pitch.”