BY IAIN COLLIN – Capital City Press
Raith Rovers manager Ray McKinnon has issued a ‘thank you’ after fans stepped in to fund a deal to sign Scotland cap Scott Robertson.
The former Dundee and Dundee United player left Hibernian at the end of last season but returned to Scotland after ripping up his contract with FC Botosani in Romania after just a few weeks.
The 30-year-old was training with Rovers but had been told that McKinnon did not have any money left to sign him.
However, a deal was made possible when supporters Colin and Margaret Smart, of Fife-based care home operators Kingdom Homes, stepped in to provide the finance to recruit Robertson for the remainder of the campaign.
The midfielder made his debut with a 15-minute cameo in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Morton, and McKinnon is thrilled with the capture.
He said: “Listen, he’s going to be a great player for us, I can tell you that right now.
“You could see wee flashes in Saturday’s game. He’s not played or trained or done anything, and he’s given the ball away twice.
“But you can just see his power and his drive and his attitude. He’s got quality and I’m over the moon with that signing.
“It’s tremendous that there are people like Colin out there who will dig deep to help us try to take things forward at Raith Rovers.
“We are indebted to Colin and Margaret and to Kingdom Homes. If there’s anyone else who feels they too could support the club in a similar way, it’d be great if they would get in touch.”
@IainCollin