Friday 4th August 2017
SAM STANTON may have left Dumbarton, but he did them one final turn last week.
He removed any lingering doubt Danny Handling had about a move to the YOUR Radio 103FM Stadium.
Danny revealed that while signing for Sons already appealed to him, his mind was fully made up after a chat with his good friend.
While Sam was on loan from Hibernian, Danny moved permanently from the Easter Road side on Friday, and made his debut at Kilmarnock the next day.
Although he is going part-time after many years with Hibs, and has ambitions of a full-time return, he has no regrets.
And from tomorrow, he hopes he can help Dumbarton towards their goal in the Championship.
Speaking to www.dumbartonfootballclub.com, Danny said: “I’m pleased to get the deal done.
“It was a long time coming as a few things had to be agreed before I officially left Hibs and became a Dumbarton player.
“It was just a matter of pushing things through, and now that they are done I hope I can do well here.
“I just met the team and the manager before the Kilmarnock game on Saturday, although I spoke to the gaffer on Friday.
“It all seems great and I’m looking forward to working with everybody.
“I speak to Sam most days. Even before we each left Hibs [Sam is on loan to Dundee United this season], we were really good mates.
“When I had the chance to come here I asked for his thoughts and he had nothing but positive things to say, especially about the management.
“It’s a team with real potential and the only downside is going part-time.
“I am still able to train with Hibernian on Monday and Friday, but am looking at other options at the moment.
“I want to stay full-time in football, so training with Hibs could be my best bet in the meantime.”
Danny played an hour of Saturday’s Betfred Cup tie at Rugby Park, which ended in a 3-0 reverse for Sons.
However, he was impressed with aspects of what he saw – and didn’t even have to wait until kick-off for positive vibes.
He added: “In the first half I thought we were the better team. We should have gone 1-0 up but the referee and his assistant didn’t see Dougie Hill’s header cross the line.
“If that counts, it’s a different story. As it was, we were set back by losing the first goal and they punished us.
“Saturday against Morton should be a good game. I played against them towards the end of last season with Raith Rovers when I was on loan there, and they have some good players.
“It’ll be a tough game, as it’s the start of the season and everybody is looking to impress from the start.
“In the warm-up on Saturday I was impressed with the ability of the group of players we have, on and off the ball.
“You could tell from that, and the possession the team had during the game, that they have a lot more ability than I had known at first.
“I wasn’t sure what I was coming into, but the standard was very high. If we can keep playing the football that the gaffer wants to play, I think we’ve a good chance.”
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Andy Galloway