The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Staggies’ top scorer heads south
Ross County yesterday admitted defeat in their attempt to keep hold of Liam Boyce after announcing the striker has joined Burton Albion for an undisclosed fee.
The Northern Irishman’s goals have proved key to the Staggies since he moved to the Highlands in the summer of 2014.
The 26-year-old former Cliftonville and Werder Bremen poacher struck 55 goals in 115 appearances during three seasons in Dingwall.
His 23-goal Ladbrokes Premiership haul from last term even saw him finish above Celtic hot shots Scott Sinclair and Moussa Dembele to top the scoring charts.
But that incredible strike rate only alerted the attention of Nigel Clough’s Sky Bet Championship outfit and he has now made his switch south.
County manager Jim McIntyre said: “It was always going to be difficult to hold on to Liam after the fantastic season he had, finishing top scorer in our league.
“We thank Liam for his services to the club and wish him the very best on what is a great opportunity for him personally. I am sure he will be a great success.”
Partick Thistle also look likely to lose a player to a Sky Bet Championship side as the club accepted a bid from Barnsley for defender Liam Lindsay.
The Jags centre-back rejected a switch to Oxford United last week, but now looks set for a move after the Tykes met the Maryhill outfit’s asking price, which is understood to be £350,000.
Manager Alan Archibald, speaking at the unveiling of the club’s new main sponsors Just Employment Law, admits he is loath to lose the 21-year-old but is glad the bid has not come any later.
The Firhill manager said: “In the last couple of hours we’ve now agreed a fee with Barnsley.
“Liam trained with us today but he will probably now go down and speak to them in the next couple of days and take it from there.
“It will be a huge loss to us if it goes through.
“He’s a left-sided centre-half and those are hard to find. They give you a good balance to your side.
“The good thing if it happens now is that it gives us a couple of months to get someone in rather than the last week of the window.
“I’ve seen some horror stories in the last couple of seasons with teams losing their best players in the last day or two. We didn’t want that to happen to us.”