There will be a celebratory mood inside Gayfield on Saturday as the SPFL Ladbrokes League 1 Championship flag is unfurled.
However, once the formalities have been completed, it will be straight down to business as Arbroath kick-off a campaign that will see the part-time Angus team go toe to toe with the likes of the two Dundee clubs, Dunfermline, Inverness and Partick Thistle.
Another full-time outfit is first up in the shape of Queen of the South and while the Red Lichties will start as underdogs – as they will for most of the games this season – Campbell defiantly insists his team will definitely not be lambs to the slaughter as the campaign unfolds.
The 65-year-old manager said: “The league starts on Saturday and we are all ready and well prepared for it.
“We are looking forward to competing in the Championship and we are well aware that we have a real battle on our hands.
“But we are determined to enjoy it, especially when you consider where we were when we took over at Arbroath with the club at the wrong end of League 2.
“I am always looking to improve the squad and trying to get better than what I’ve got but we have had a good pre-season.
“However, it is all about looking forward now and this weekend against Queen of the South.
“We will be unfurling the flag and there will hopefully be a big crowd inside Gayfield.”
Campbell added: “Alloa have shown that a part-time team can hold their own in the Championship so it can be done.
“We will certainly not be lambs to the slaughter.
“It is important though that we get points on the board early doors.
“But if things are going wrong when we are playing at Gayfield, I will just switch the wind machine on!
“Seriously though it is important that we make home advantage count.”
Campbell is also hoping to take advantage of the huge pressure the big-budget, full-time teams will be under whenever they face Arbroath.
He added: “Don’t forget that the likes of Dundee United, Dundee, Dunfermline and Partick Thistle have to live with big pressure so let’s see how they deal with it.
“Every time they play Arbroath, they will be expected to win. It is a different ball game for them altogether.
“But all I am interested in is Arbroath and we will be all right.
“We will dig in and it doesn’t matter when we play them, we will be a hard game for anybody.”
