Former Hearts & Kilmarnock man Jamie Hamill joins Queen of the South as Championship outfit complete double signing

BY ALAN TEMPLE – @CCP_Sport

Queen of the South have snapped up former Hearts and Kilmarnock midfielder Jamie Hamill on a one-year deal.

Hamill, 29, made 18 appearances for the Rugby Park side last term, but his last outing came in a 1-0 defeat against Hamilton as he fell out of favour with incoming manager Lee Clark.

He was released at the end of the season and Queens boss Gavin Skelton, a former Killie teammate of Hamill’s, has wasted no time in handing the versatile former Scotland under-21 internationalist a deal for the 2016/17 campaign.

“I know what I’m getting with Jamie,” lauded Skelton. “He’ll bring a bit of dig and tremendous experience to the squad. We’ve been talking to him for a little while so I’m delighted to finally get things signed up.”

Hamill played 191 games for Kilmarnock over two spells either side of a three-year stint at Hearts after Jim Jefferies took him to Tynecastle.

“I’m just looking forward to getting started,” Hamill told Queens’ official website. “It’s a club with a lot of potential and when the manager got in touch I was always keen to come.  It wasn’t difficult to get a deal sorted.”

Meanwhile, Queens have also signed promising striker Lyndon Dykes.

Dykes, 20, emerged through the club’s youth system in 2014 but returned to his native Australia last January. Now keen to resume his career in Scotland, he has also penned a one-year contract.