Staggies swap Spain for Auld Reekie in schedule disruption

ROSS County have cancelled a planned January training camp in Spain and will instead spend time in Edinburgh next week.

The Premiership winter break was brought forward following the government’s restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of the Omicron variant of Covid, with grounds limited to crowds of 500 since Boxing Day.

County manager Malky Mackay revealed the Staggies had planned to travel to Spain for a January training camp, which they have been forced to shelve.

The County boss will now take his squad to the Oriam performance centre in Edinburgh as part of their preparation for the return to action at home to Motherwell on January 18.

Mackay said: “We are going to Edinburgh, but remember we are three hours north.

“It’s like the best-laid plans. We were supposed to go to Spain for a week. I had the training camp lined up, it looked terrific and everything was fine.

“Then all this happened and all the Premiership chairmen decided to cancel the trips.

“That was the first thing and then the next thing was all the dates got moved.

“There were players who had time off and were going away to Tenerife or Spain or wherever, they had to cancel that, so it’s fluid.

“As soon as the league said Sunday’s game would happen and the next two wouldn’t everyone decided to give them this week off with their families.

“Next week we’ll do something. I spoke to people at Oriam and at the hotel I know, and we have Oriam for three or four days.

“We have a hotel booked and we’ll give them a few days kicking about Edinburgh. There is still another 10 days before our next game after that.”

Malky Mackay has some capital plans for County.