ISAMAGIC NUMBER Rutkiewicz happy to tie up central defenders on new deals

Stirling Albion manager Kevin Rutkiewicz admits he was delighted to get three of his central defenders signed up again for next season.

Paul McLean, Jordan McGregor and Kyle Banner have all penned new deals for 2020/21 along with midfielder Dom Docherty and forwards Dylan Mackin and Sean Heaver. Goalkeeper Blair Currie was already under contract for next term, having joined from Clyde in the summer.

Rutkiewicz remains in talks with a number of others, including skipper Ross

McGeachie and left-back James Creaney, with Stirling generally solid at the back in 2019/20.

The curtailed campaign ended with a 7-1 thrashing by champions Cove Rangers on March 10 but the Binos had the best defensive record in League 2 over a number of months.

Rutkiewicz said: “I think those who have seen the games would all agree that Paul McLean’s level of consistency has been really good. He’s a great guy to have in the changing room and he’s a good pro. He is someone I can lean on and he was pivotal in everything good we did last season.

“Jordan McGregor is a big character on the pitch and brings an aggression to the team – he defends on the front foot. He missed the start of the season when we lost five games in a row. Then we only lost one of our next seven or eight with him back in the team. We seem a better unit when he plays; he has got that edge and he really wants to win games.”

Former Brechin City defender McLean missed only one league game while McGregor, who was snapped up from Aberdeen in January 2019, was ever present from September onwards and chipped in with three goals.

Banner was in and out of the side but the 20-year-old showed his quality when called upon and Rutkiewicz has high hopes for the youth team graduate.

He said: “Kyle has grown over the last year and has become a leader and also got stronger mentally. The only reason he was out the team was due to the form of Paul and Jordan.

“He was a magnet and won every header and he’s going to learn playing alongside Paul and Jordan.

“Kyle has been at the club since he was about 13 and I think he is a future captain of Stirling Albion. If he continues to progress then the problem will be hanging on to him because I believe he can play at a higher level in the future.”