Clachnacuddin aiming to recruit in defence for new Highland League season
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Manager Jordan Macdonald will be looking to add to his backline at Clachnacuddin before the start of the Highland League season.
The Lilywhites have been back in pre-season training for two weeks, and play their first friendly this weekend as preparations begin to ramp up for the 2022/23 season.
For the most part, Clach have a settled squad after an encouraging campaign last time out, which saw the Grant Street Park outfit record their highest Highland League finish in five years.
However, Macdonald is comparatively thin on the ground when it comes to defensive options, so will be looking to bolster his squad before the competitive action returns.
“I don’t think it’s any secret that we need centre halves,” Macdonald reasoned.
“At this moment in time the only one that we’ve got is Jamie Calder, who is 18.
“Jamie played for us last year and did really well. We have high hopes for Jamie, he’s a fantastic footballer who is good in the air, but we need more than one.
“We’re not going to rush it, we’ll take our time and we’ll get there eventually.
“The full back areas is probably another one that I wouldn’t say we’re short in, but we could do with one more.
“There will be nothing wholesale, no massive changes from us. We’ve got a settled team, and we’re quite happy with what we’ve got.”
Part of the reason Clach have a shortage of options in defence is because they had a number of players on loan last year filling those roles.
Harry Nicolson and Lewis Nicolson each made the short move to Grant Street Park on a temporary basis from ICT last season.
They were joined by Inverness midfielder Robbie Thompson and Elgin City defender Ben Cormack in joining the Lilywhites on loan.
That is an option Macdonald is keen to explore again, saying the loan market could prove extremely valuable for a club like Clachnacuddin.
“I’m hoping that we will go down that road again,” he said.
“If the right opportunities become available for us – I’m not saying we definitely will, but a club like us sometimes has to take that.
“Caley Thistle and Elgin both gave us players last season, and the players we got were excellent for us.
“I would have no problem in doing that again, but you just have to wait and see.
“You don’t know who’s going to be available yet, so we’ll look at that if it arises.”
