The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Saints boss surprised by Foster’s availability
Wright pounced when Staggies decided to let defender go
Tommy Wright admitted that he was surprised Richard Foster was deemed surplus to requirements by Ross County.
But the Dingwall club’s loss has definitely been St Johnstone’s gain, with the former Aberdeen and Rangers man earning a new two-year deal on the back of a very impressive start to his Perth career.
Foster joined David Wotherspoon in signing a contract extension yesterday and Wright said: “We are delighted to get David and Richard signed up for two years.
“Richard has done really well since he arrived, he was a player we’d always liked in the past so were glad to get him in the first place.
“He’s played at the top level and played at big clubs, so if anyone was going to be able to come in and replace Dave Mackay then he was.
“We were surprised he became available but it has been great for us because it has worked out really well.
“He can play left-back and right-back so his versatility is a real asset.”
On Wotherspoon, Wright added: “David has been here for a while now and we were really pleased he wanted to stay.
“He’s a big part of our team and has contributed a lot to our success in the last few years.
“We’re delighted he’s staying, he’s entering the best time of his career and I think he’ll kick on again.
“He’s maturing as a player all the time. He’s getting more experienced from playing regularly.
“He knows I have a lot of confidence in him.
“He doesn’t score as many as he should because with his ability he should score more, but he’s in double figures with assists every season.”
The mid-season split is starting to focus minds and Wright knows his team can make a big statement with a victory at Firhill tomorrow night.
“We could go 11 points clear of Partick if we win, which would be a great thing at this point of the season,” he said.
“But we know it won’t be easy down there because they play good football and have a bit of steel about them.
“They’ve become tougher to beat over the last year or so and have players who always seem to do well against us.
“We have won there already this season so if we perform there’s no reason we can’t do it again.”