Jagsmake double signing
Changes pay off as Glasgow Perthshire sent packing
East Kilbride Thistle have bolstered their squad with two new signings this week.
Jags gaffer Gary Hamilton has swooped to bring in defender Chris Love and striker Gary Jack until the end of the season, revealing the club even paid a fee for Jack.
Earlier this month, Hamilton and club director Peter Kelsall clashed over whether the Showpark outfit had funds available to pay for players.
However, Hamilton was given cash to bring Jack in after securing Love’s services for free.
Hamilton told the News: “We paid a nominal fee for Gary from West Calder United and that’s great that we’ve been able to do that, but there’s no wages.
“Chris has come in for free after he left Saltcoats.
“We tried to get him from Saltcoats seven weeks ago and they weren’t interested in letting him leave, but I heard he packed it in there and we made our move to get him in.”
Love featured in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Glasgow Perthshire, while Jack is still a week or so away from full fitness.
EK THISTLE ......................................... 1 GLASGOW PERTHSHIRE ................. 0 East Kilbride Thistle boss Gary Hamilton hopes their complete performance in Saturday’s win over Glasgow Perthshire kick-starts their season.
The Jags claimed just their second win of the league campaign thanks to Kevin Clotherty’s first-half strike – and they jumped three places in the table to move clear of the relegation zone.
It was a welcome win for the Jags gaffer on their first home outing in over a month and one that was gleefully received by the Showpark faithful at full-time.
A re-jig at the back as well as the signings of central defender Chris Love and striker Gary Jack gave the Jags a shot in the arm to deliver their best performance of the season.
Hamilton said: “The players fought for 94 minutes for each other and that hasn’t been the case previously this season.
“It’s maybe been 60 minutes or 93 at Maryhill, when we lost a late goal, but they fought from the very first whistle to the last. We didn’t let Perthshire play. They have a couple of smashing players but we countered that threat very well.
“Getting Chris in is great. He played well in a bounce game on Wednesday night. I wasn’t there but my assistant Stevie McPhillips and Stevie McKenna said how well he played.
“We tried a new shape that night with three centre backs and it worked well, so we used that for Saturday and it helped us keep a clean sheet.
“It was nice to see the fans applaud us off the pitch at full-time. They pay their money and this result is for them, so we are delighted.
“Hopefully this is the start of something good.”
Thistle got the breakthrough in 38 minutes when David Bannerman’s cross from the left picked out Cloherty in the box and he was on hand to poke the ball past the keeper from close range.
The hosts restricted Glasgow Perthshire to attempts from distance and keeper Connor Gaffney was rarely troubled.
Hamilton added: “We never looked like we were going to concede and if you don’t concede goals, you don’t lose games.
“It was really positive. We scored at a great time, kept a clean sheet and the players defended really well.
“The big incentive for the players was the chance to move up a few places and they took it.”
Thistle now travel to Larkhall Thistle on Saturday, kick-off 2pm, but they will have to do so without their manager.
Hamilton is heading on holiday to the States, but he’ll be keeping tabs on his side from across the pond.
He added: “It’s my wife’s 50th in New York this weekend, so I’ll be sitting up at 9am there waiting for updates from the game.
“We’ve got some big fixtures coming up, so hopefully we can pick up more points.”