JORDAN Jones admits he's almost wary about celebrating good times given how quickly matters can take a downturn.
The Northern Ireland winger received recent praise from his Rangers boss, which left him with mixed feelings: "If you have someone like Steven Gerrard complimenting you it can only be a good thing but you can't get carried away.
"I am sort of worried to enjoy things like that now because I have seen over the last year how quickly football can change. I have to keep my feet firmly on the floor and hopefully keep getting opportunities."
The Light Blues head to the home of arch-rivals this weekend with Jones hoping to play a part and redeem himself after a red card for a bad challenge in the Ibrox encounter in September of last year:
"I'd love to be involved. Obviously my last Old Firm wasn't the best memory so I'd really like an opportunity to change that experience and change it into a positive one. We have to see what happens.
"It has been a really tough year with injury and being left out of squads and all the stuff you see written about yourself but you just got to keep going.
"You think hopefully things will change and thankfully I got my opportunity earlier in the season and scored a goal [against Motherwell] which was a really special moment. I just have to keep working hard.
"When you are at a massive club things can change daily so you have to keep yourself on your toes and as fit as you possibly can and I believe I have done that.
"You could see even against Austria I lasted 90 minutes. That was my first 90 minutes since Belarus away, which was June 2019, so I just have to keep myself fit, stay mentally strong and keep going."
Jones is seeking improvement on the international front too after starting the home defeat by Austria on Sunday night:
"Mixed emotions obviously… on one hand I was over the moon to be back at Windsor Park and playing in front of some fans but the overall feeling is one of disappointment. After such a high the other night in Bosnia it was a really flat performance from the boys. I don't think we started well and that has cost us the game."
