Elgin City manager Gavin Price says he needs to strengthen his squad for the restart of the League 2 season on March 20, and is exploring some loan options
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ELGIN City are set to explore the loan market to strengthen their return to football this month.
With Leagues One and Two given the go-ahead this week to resume training and matches with immediate effect, City are set to resume their campaign in just two weeks time.
A restart date of Saturday, March 20 has been approved for Leagues 1 and 2, while City’s Scottish Cup second-round tie at home to Ayr United will take place on Tuesday, March 23.
Reports suggest that the SPFL’s two lower leagues could restart with a 22-match programme, involving a split after 18 games into a top five and bottom five for an extra four games to determine the champions and play-off positions.
This format would require numerous midweek matches to get the season finished on time for the play-offs at the end of May, and Elgin manager Gavin Price is aware that he needs to add to his squad to cope with such a fixture schedule.
“I will need to get one or two players in at least,” he admitted.
“What with the demands on the squad that we are inevitably going to have, we need to have a wee bit more strength in depth and we are working on trying to make that happen.”
Price lost one player during the winter when defender Andy McDonald, who had been on loan from St Cadocs BC, elected to switch to League 1 Peterhead when his contract was terminated with his Glasgow club.
Elgin can only make loan signings, an option they used to good effect last season before play was shut down in March due to the spread of coronavirus.
They brought in the likes of Daniel Mackay and Cameron Harper, now first-team regulars at Caley Thistle, as well as former player Archie Macphee from Formartine United and talented Dundee United defender Ross Graham, who spent the first half of this season farmed out to League 1 Cove Rangers.
Price admitted he would also be forced to limit squad numbers for matches over the remainder of the term due to travel restrictions.
The Black and Whites began conducting PCR testing this week in order to resume training sessions. Once matches restart, only ten people are allowed to travel on the same bus while players will have to make car journeys by themselves.
As for the league format, if a 22-game season isn’t approved, it could be 18 or 27 games to play, and Price says his club will embrace whatever schedule they are given.
“All we can do is try and win games and get as many points as we can. It will be Saturday, Tuesday every week. I don’t think we will train a lot,” he said.
“It’s a massive financial commitment for the club. There’s the testing and transport issues involved, but the club is one hundred per cent behind it.
“There’s a great thing going on at the club just now and everybody wants to make sure that this season goes ahead.”
