Patience is a virtue, says Smith

DUNDEE BOSS Barry Smith has told fans not to expect a rush of new signings as the Dark Blues gear up for life in the top flight of Scottish football.

In the wake of Monday’s historic decision by the SPL clubs to invite Dundee in as Club 12 in place of Rangers, Smith said he would be looking to add at least six players to his squad.

The Dens Park manager is prepared to be patient, however, and will not be rushed into adding new faces.

He said: “I speak to agents every day of the week so all that’s changed (since Monday) is that there are some I haven’t been contacted by before.

“That’s good for me, as the more names I have to look through, the better.

“However, I am certainly not going to jump in and sign the first six players mentioned to me.

“We will make sure we decide what is best for the team.

“There is more chance of making mistakes if you rush things. So we will look at players thoroughly before making any decisions. They have to be the right people, it is not just about making signings to boost numbers.

“I think we have a good squad just now but we are short of numbers and we need to add to it.

“Everybody is excited at the moment and the fans are looking forward to being in the SPL but it’s not a case of doing everything right now.

“We have looked at players in the event that this happened and we will be speaking to plenty people in the next week or so.”

The need to bolster the Dundee squad has been starkly illustrated by the fact that Smith currently has five first-team players out injured.

He said: “Steven Milne has been out running and he is obviously a wee bit behind but he looks after himself.

“Carl Finnigan is coming along great and is further along in his rehab than we expected. However, Stephen O’Donnell, Kevin McBride and Jamie McCluskey were unable to train today so we are short of numbers.

“We are down to the bare bones which shows why we need to bring more players in.”

The players already at Dens were still buzzing yesterday as the news of their SPL status started to sink in.

Smith is determined to nurture that momentum going into the first league game against Kilmarnock on August 4.

He said: “The lads are obviously excited about the challenge ahead. We now have to maintain that high and keep the momentum going into the first game of the season.

“We have a good squad but that extra edge can be vital and it is important the buzz doesn’t fizzle out.

“The boys came back fit but they have worked extremely hard in pre-season with a view to being in the First Division.

“That won’t change now that we are in the SPL, it just means we have something different to focus on.”

Barry Smith has told fans not to expect a rush of new signings despite entering the SPL.