Thursday 28th June 2018
WHEN footballers chat to their mates, they just never know what it can lead to.
For Ross Perry, it led to another chance in League One.
He went out of that division last season with Albion Rovers. Now he hopes that with Dumbarton he can exit it again – in the other direction.
The defender signed on Monday, with the wheels having been put in motion by a conversation with his good friend, and now team-mate, Kyle Hutton.
And he’s already got quite a bit in common with a number of the Sons squad.
Speaking to www.dumbartonfootballclub.com, Ross said: “I’m really happy with the move. I know a few of the players and I know how highly they speak of the club.
“Last season was a tough year by all accounts. They were doing well to stay in the Championship for a number of years. People are almost looking forward to next season because they know Dumbarton will be really competitive.
“Kyle asked me what I was doing this season and I hadn’t actually thought about it very much. Albion Rovers had a tough season so I wasn’t sure what was going to happen.
“I also work for C&G Systems, who are primary sponsor of the stadium at Dumbarton. One of the guys there had a chat with the manager and I then spoke to him before I went on holiday.
“I came in last week, he liked what he saw, I liked what I saw, and we worked a deal out.
“The additions so far have been pretty impressive. Rory Loy is a massive capture for the club and hopefully we can benefit from his experience.”
Incredibly, Dumbarton return to match action tomorrow at East Kilbride, just seven weeks after last season ended.
It is still two weeks until competitive fixtures resume, and a further three until League One starts. But Ross feels that the current heatwave will give Sons a challenge on Saturday.
And he hopes it can be the first step on the road to celebrations in May.
He added: “I’ve only had two weeks of training and now we’re getting back into match action. But if you speak to any footballer, they’d rather play games than do pre-season.
“We enjoy a break for three or four weeks but we’re looking forward to it.
“When I left work today (Thursday) it was 36 degrees in the office. The heat does affect us – we’re Scottish and are used to 15 or 16 degrees.
“Obviously the whole squad isn’t together yet and the gaffer is still to have serious conversations with us, but from the brief chats we’ve had, everything’s been positive.
“He wants to go straight back up and I think we’re more than capable of doing that. It’s a tough league, I know that from last season, but I feel we’ll be right up there.”
Andy Galloway