A WEALTH OF RICHES
Keepers will thrive on competition, says Holt
Livingston boss Gary Holt says he’s delighted to have two top goalkeepers at his disposal – and believes they will bring out the best in each other for the rest of the season.
Robby McCrorie ( 21) was recalled at the expense of Ryan Schofield ( 20) for last weekend’s draw at Hibs and saved a penalty but the boss knows the England under- 20 international has played a huge role in his rival’s success at the club.
Schofield was originally signed on loan f rom Huddersfield Town after Matija Sarkic was recalled by Aston Villa – only to pick up an injury on his debut, prompting Holt to sign McCrorie from Rangers.
Both have turned in impressive displays when called upon and the gaffer knows the competition for the starting spot can only be a positive for the club – and both players.
Speaking to the Courier, Holt said: “We’ve got two young goalkeepers at the top of their game who are both keen to get better.
“If Robby wasn’t being pushed for the jersey, would he have saved the penalty? Would he have had such a good game if he was thinking he was comfortable and there was no pressure for his position in the team?
“Ryan’s performance at Ibrox and his performances in training have pushed Robby and we know that Ryan is capable of playing at this level.”
He added: “We’ll try and get him some game time but you never know what’s going to happen.
“We sat them both down and said that Robby came out of the team because he wasn’t allowed to play against Rangers.
“He hadn’t done anything wrong to warrant being out of the team.
“Ryan had to come out because of injury and Robby’s stepped in.
“Who knows how he’ll perform in the coming weeks but Ryan certainly isn’t just going to sit back and be happy with being on the bench – and we wouldn’t want him to be happy with that either.
“We’ve got two talented young goalkeepers pushing to get in the team and it’s pleasing to see.”
Meanwhile, our sister paper The Daily Record are reporting that Motherwell are hopeful of landing Livingston defender Ricki Lamie on a precontract. The 26- year- old’s deal is up in the summer and he could be set to end his two-year stay after falling further down the pecking order following the signing of Efe Ambrose.