Paterson signs new talents for the Jags
But EK boss jokes it may be June before weather allows debuts
East Kilbride Thistle gaffer Alan Paterson expressed his delight after signing two new players then joked they might not get a game until June because of the weather.
Midfielder Ross Campbell and attacker Paul Byrne have signed up at the Showpark for the rest of the season, but they were denied a debut against Glasgow Perthshire on Saturday after the Jags suffered their 10th postponement of the campaign.
Last week Paterson hit out at Perthshire for refusing to move the match across town to K-Park and their opponents cost them yet another outing as the Showpark was left frozen on Saturday morning.
Thistle are set to host Clydebank in the Central League Cup this weekend, but with wintry weather sweeping the country Jags fans may have to wait to see the new recruits in action.
Paterson said: “It’s good to get Ross and Paul on board – but they might have to wait until June before they get a game with this weather.
“We can’t move this weekend’s game to K-Park because East Kilbride FC are using it for training on Saturday, so we need to stick with the Showpark.
“The weather doesn’t look good with the snow and frost that’s coming, so I’m not sure they’ll get the chance to play this weekend. It’s concerning because the games are mounting up.
“But they’ve both come in and worked really hard. Hopefully their enthusiasm rubs off and it has a knock on effect in our performances.”
Campbell has arrived from EKFC Amateurs and Byrne has sealed a deal after training with Thistle for the past few weeks after his exit from Troon.
They will help fill the gap left by David McKean after he was ruled out for a year with a broken kneecap sustained in a 4-0 defeat to Rossvale.
And Paterson hopes they can give his side the shot in the arm they need after a rotten run of results, which has seen them lose four games on the spin.
“Players are fighting for places now, whereas before they were quite confidenct of keeping their jersey because of injuries and suspensions,” said the Jags boss.
“A bit of complacency has crept in, so this will give us fresh impetus. It will keep the boys on their toes. David McKean is a huge loss to us, but these new signing should help with that.
“The Rossvale result was not acceptable and the boys are desperate to make up for that performance.”
Kick-off on Saturday is set for 2pm.