Manager on Thursday
Thursday, 1st Feb 201801/02/18: AJ - “If you look at the games coming up, they are against teams round about us so it is really important that we pick up three points.
Dunfermline Athletic manager Allan Johnston has signed three new players this week, and he feels that has given his whole squad a boost:-
“Training today was really lively because sometimes when new players come in everybody wants to show how good a player they are as well. Just show that ‘I am the top man here’. Hopefully that pushes the players forward with real good competition that will help us in the games as well.
“It is always great to add a bit of freshness to the squad. Obviously some of the boys that we have signed are young, they have got enthusiasm and good energy.
“You could see that today in training and it makes sure that there is going to be competition because we have a big squad. You have to make sure that you are on top of your game to keep your place.
“There wasn’t really much competition in midfield. The boys that we have brought in are slightly different as well which is always good.
“Tom (Beadling) is a young lad but he has played centre half and centre midfield. He is a good passer and James Vincent has played at a really good level in the Premier League.
“He probably needs a couple of weeks just to get up to speed because he has not played a lot of first team football. I am sure that it will not take him long and you can see this week in the last couple of days that he is getting sharper and sharper. I am delighted with that.
“We brought in young Dan yesterday. Pace is vital nowadays and he just gives us that option of a wide player who will hopefully run off the ball and get to the byeline. We have wide players who come in and play so it just gives us a totally different option.”
Tom Beadling (pictured below) and Dan Armstrong have been tested in training since the manager believes that when you bring players in from under 23s football it is totally different.
“They need to learn to play first team football. We need to make sure that they are capable of doing that. They have fitted in really well. The two of them trained really well and have a great attitude. I’m sure that they will do really well.”
“We have to take our chances. We have got to be organised for the counterattack because they caught us on the counterattack again. Setpieces are massive as well because guys like Tom O’Ware score a lot of goals from corners and free kicks. Last year he scored well into double figures so it is probably one of their biggest dangers.
“Going forward they have a lot of pace, a lot of energy, they cause teams problems with the way they play. They defend really well so it is going to be a hard game. We are going to have to make sure that we go there, put in a really good performance and hopefully be the start of a run that could propel us up the table.
“If you look at the games coming up, they are against teams round about us so it is really important that we pick up three points. It makes a massive difference because at this time of year results are critical.”
Michael Paton and Dean Shiels both had to come off during the match against St Mirren on Friday night but both are back in training. Along with the three new signings, Scott Lochhead and Conner Duthie have returned from their loans to Forfar Athletic to give the manager a selection problem of the best kind.
One player who will not be in the Pars squad is striker Callum Smith who has been loaned out to Alloa Athletic until the end of the season. The 18 year old striker has only made one sub appearance since his last start in November at Dumbarton. AJ said:-
“I think that somebody his age needs to go and play week in week out. Coming on as a sub, being an impact player and playing the odd game is not enough for him. I just felt that it was better for him to go and try get a run of games - something similar to what St Johnstone did with Stevie May.
“Callum has that type of ability as well, he is going to be a big player for us. I can see somebody buying him in a couple of years. He goes there to get games, get some goals and come back here and do the same. I am sure that there will be teams queuing up for him.”
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