On the up Raith Rovers 'acting like a Premiership club in waiting' says CEO Andrew Barrowman

And, when asked by the Fife Free Press if artificial pitches being barred from Scotland’s top flight in time for the start of the 2026-27 season had in any way reduced Raith’s desire to gain promotion next season and then have to ‘rip up’ their pitch and replace it with grass within a year, Barrowman responded: “No way. If that was the case I think it's better to pack up and go home.

"We are here for one reason, we said that from the outset. When we get there we don't know, but we're trying to act and perform like a Premiership club even before we get there.

"We will do what we need to do in terms of a club to make sure that we're compliant.

"When we get there we'll take it as we go and see where it takes us.

"This is a fun place, you enjoy coming to work every day.

"And I think there's a vibrancy, an energy around the place that it's probably fair to say wasn't here when we first walked in the door last May.

"We've got lots of good people within this building, some of whom were here before, some of whom we've added.

"There's a real good chemistry and there is a real energy day to day.

"Obviously the players aren't here now which makes it a lot quieter which is good. But there's still lots of energy in this building and lots of great work getting done in terms of commercial and everything that goes around about a football club to support what happens on the pitch.”

Barrowman said that retaining key winger Dylan Easton – who signed a new two-year contract despite interest from other clubs – had been a key development.

He said: "Dylan - who was much sought after - committing his future here is a big one for us.

"Especially in the first half of last season, he was arguably the best player in the division.

"There would have been teams trying to get Dylan and lure him to their club, so it's a great coup for us.

"It shows this is a good place to be.

"People enjoy being here, whether that be players or members of staff, it's an environment where people can flourish and I think decisions like the one Dylan has made are testimony to that.

"There's been a lot of hard work done for many weeks and many months. We obviously had to wait a little bit longer in terms of the uncertainty over what division we were going to be in.

"We're starting to see the benefits of that and I'm sure there will be some more signing news coming soon.

Meanwhile, Barrowman said that this summer’s improvement works at Stark’s Park are well underway.

He added: "The builders were in last Monday, they started.

"All day I've been hearing walls coming down and different machinery being used.

"It's maybe not work that the fans will automatically see when they return at the start of the season.

"It's more the underbelly, the undercroft of the main stand and creating a better environment for our staff to work in every day.

"External cladding work in the main stand will start later this month.”