WE’VE MADE A STATEMENT Gaffer thrilled by new players at club
Stirling Albion have made their first new signings ahead of the 2020/21 season.
Manager Kevin Rutkiewicz has made an eye-catching move for striker Andy Ryan, who spent the last three seasons with Dunfermline, and has also brought in ex-Queen’s Park forward Kieran Moore.
Ryan, 25, can also count Hamilton Accies and Forfar Athletic among his former clubs and scored 27 goals for Airdrie in 2016/17, which earned him a move to East End Park.
Moore, 20, was voted Young Player of the Year for Queen’s Park last season after netting five times in 23 League 2 matches. He was previously a prolific striker with his local amateur side Lochgilphead Red Star but is more likely to play on the wing for the Binos.
Stirling’s squad is shaping up nicely, with 13 players now under contract, and the arrival of Ryan looks like a bit of a coup, with his former club Airdrie also linked with his signature.
Ryan was often used as a substitute by Dunfermline and had a loan spell back at Airdrie in the second half of last season, scoring in the February wins over Clyde and Peterhead before the campaign was halted prematurely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Rutkiewicz said: “I’m delighted to get Andy over the line and I think his signing is a statement from the whole club. The board have backed me, without putting the club in danger, and this shows the sort of calibre myself and the rest of the management team are looking at.
“We have set the bar high and this is what Stirling Albion can be. I’m hoping he can have the sort of impact Darren Smith had here and hopefully it’s one that will excite the fans.
“I know that other clubs were interested – I’m sure there were at least three others. Us being in League 2 was a stumbling block but we managed to get a deal done and I’m hoping that Andy being here will also help attract other good players to Stirling Albion.
“I actually tried to sign Andy last summer. He is a player I admire and he should be a top League 2 player. One of his biggest strengths is that he can score a variety of goals – his movement is good and he has real intelligence on the park.”
Rutkiewicz is also excited about the arrival of young talent Moore, who scored twice when Queen’s Park won 3-1 at Forthbank in February. He made a total of 51 league appearances for the Spiders in his two seasons at Hampden, around half of them as a substitute, and weighed in with eight goals.
He said: “Our performance analyst Bill Orr carved up the numbers for Kieran and they were very good in terms of goals, assists and minutes on the pitch. They stack up far better than what we had last season and his attitude is first class – he has come from a very good environment at Queen’s Park.
“We have beaten two or three clubs to his signature. Kieran can play right or left and also through the middle but I see him playing wide for us. He is very direct and that will cause problems for defenders.”