Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
My big move can come round again
Shields on Rovers to Sunderland and Scotland return
Moving from Albion Rovers to English giants Sunderland isn’t a common transfer in football but it’s a journey that Coatbridge star Connor Shields made.
The Queen of the South striker - who was player of the month in the Championship for February – swapped Cliftonhill for the Stadium of Light back in January 2018 after impressing for the League Two side.
The move was completed on the final day of the January transfer window and Shields admits it was a whirlwind experience.
He said: “It was absolutely mad. The deadline day was on Wednesday and I got home in the early hours of Thursday morning.
“I moved down south on Friday so my life changed so quickly. I was working parttime and playing part-time then I was a Sunderland player within a few days.
“I was in the Academy which is an absolute joke. Going from Cliftonhill to that facility was just mad!
“The full-time environment was completely new and different. I was supposed to be playing Arbroath that Saturday but instead I was playing West Ham in an under 23’s game.
“It all happened so quickly but it was a brilliant experience. I’m grateful for the experience but it’s unfortunate it didn’t work out.
“But, I’m still young and hopefully I can finish off the season well and work myself up to those sort of moves.”
There was a Scottish contingent at Sunderland when Shields made the move down south.
Aiden Mcgeady, Lee Connolly and Chris Maguire were all playing for the Mackems and current Hibs manager Jack Ross took over the reigns after six months of Shields’ spell.
The 23 year-old said: “Lee, who is currently on-loan at Alloa, was there and we got on really well.
“Aiden was there too but in the summer when Jack came in, more Scottish boys joined the club. Chris, Dylan Mcgeough and John
Mclaughlin so once they came in there was a strong Scottish presence.
“It became a bit easier for people to understand you. It was really good because the opportunity to train with the first team was brilliant.
“I cherished the experience and I’m really glad I made the move.”
Another ex-rovers star, Ross Stewart, joined Sunderland this summer from Ross County.
The 24 year-old completed a remarkable journey from Junior football to the North East and Shields provided some advice from his experience.
He said:”he should enjoy the experience and he’s contracted for a few years. He needs to express himself and he’ll get a chance so I hope he takes it.
“He’s more than ready to take the chance and hopefully they get promoted this season into the Championship.
“It’s a brilliant move for him. “Ross has gone from a fulltime environment and he’s played at that level for a few years.
“I went from part-time to full-time and it was a massive jump. It was the first time that I’d ever been in five days a week. Ross has been brilliant up here and hopefully he can kick on. I don’t think the jump will be as big for Ross so I hope he can hit the ground running.”
Brian Reid believes league reconstruction would provide some much-needed excitement to the lower leagues – amid a renewed attempt by Old Firm colt teams to enter the SPFL.
Celtic and Rangers are reportedly willing to spend £3 million so their colt teams can enter the SPFL pyramid, with the cash to be spread across clubs in the bottom two leagues of the current setup.
It’s a highly controversial topic but Rovers boss Reid believes it could be the catalyst for a much-needed restructure of the lower leagues.
He said:“the way to solve everything would be reconstruction this season.
“Whether the colts are involved or not, it would be something fresh ahead of the new season.
“I’ve always been a fan of only playing teams twice a season, home and away.
“I played down in England with Blackburn and Burnley and it was so much better.
“If League One and Two were expanded then it would be more refreshing for everyone.
“There are some ambitious clubs down the pyramids who have spent money and would bring value to the league.
“I wouldn’t be against a bigger league and players would really enjoy it. I enjoyed it as a player and it was miles better.
“Sometimes you can draw a team in the cup and play them six times in a season. It’s ridiculous and far too much.
“Supporters get fed up with it as well and that shows in the attendances. I’ve always been a fan of it so that could be a possibility and it would be good for the pyramid.”
League One and Two clubs were hopeful of receiving the green light to return to action on Monday.
But an SFA statement provided no imminent return date with the government yet to grant permission for clubs to return.
Reid said:“the longer it goes without a decision, the more unlikely it gets that we will return. It’s already getting very close to that stage.
“We started playing in
October and it’s now
March but we’ve only played eight league games.
“It’s almost impossible to fit all the games in two
monthsand I don’tthink you can cut theamountofgames down again.
“You can’t movethe goalposts and changethe circumstances duringa season. A team canhavea bad start and youfind yourselfdown the bottom of the league withoutenough games to recover.
“Everybody involvedwithfootball wantsthe leagues to start.it’sa great release from everything else that is going on in the world.”
The Scottishfa promised clubsan update on March 1, butthe statement releaseddidnot live up toexpectations.
SFA presidentrod Petrie thanked clubs fortheir patienceand understanding during theshutdown, which cameinto force injanuary, stating:“we are grateful to all leagues, clubsand participantsaffected by the temporary suspensionfortheir patienceand understanding during this period of uncertainty.
“Theyhave played their part in keeping the nation safeand restricting the potential spread of the virus.
“I would also like to thank the representatives from those leagues and clubs, who have beenproactive and collaborativeingiving their input into safeand sustainable plans fora return to competition.
“These plans have already been discussedwithgovernmentofficials.we lookforward to hearing when and in what circumstances those leagues which have been suspended can return.”