McKinnon and Pressley join new faces at Tynecastle

From the archive

2 Jul 1998

Hearts began their preparation for another assault on the championship by unveiling four new faces at Tynecastle yesterday.

Rob McKinnon confirmed his signing from Twente Enschede, two Austrian youngsters, Christain Schandl and Marcus Holemar, arrived at the club on short-term contracts, and Steven Pressley made a late dash from Dundee United to join on a free transfer.

Manager Jim Jefferies was also delighted to confirm that Colin Cameron and Gary Naysmith had also signed two year extensions to their present contracts with the Edinburgh club, joining Gary Locke and Steve Fulton, who had both signed extensions at the end of last season.

Pressley had been at the centre of transfer specualtion at the weekend, the 24-year-old being linked with a number of clubs at home and abroad, but didn't receive a call from Hearts until yesterday morning.

''It's been a busy day,'' he admitted.

''I'm sorry to be leaving Dundee United, because I had three relatively successful years there from a personal point of view, and the club made me a very ambitious offer to stay, but I spoke to Jim Jefferies and he persuaded me that my future lay elsewhere.'' Pressley already possesses two championship medals and a Scottish Cup winners' medal from his time at Rangers, and admitted seeing Scotland under-21 team-mates Christain Dailly and Jackie McNamara make the breakthrough in France filled him with envy.

''Over the last few years I feel I've improved and Craig Brown has shown he is willing to give players a chance, so I hope the competition here will bring out the best in me.

I had received a couple of offers from clubs abroad but I'm only 24 and this is a responsible move for me to make.

Nobody can doubt how ambitious this club is, and we're both very happy to have agreed a deal.'' Jefferies echoed those sentiments, and admitted that he was striving to add competition to every area of his player pool, Pressley now join fellow centre halfs David Weir, Paul Ritchie, Dave Mcpherson and Alan McManus at the club.

''We benefited from having competition for places last year and both Steven and Rob will make the squad here even stronger.

They'll keep the players on their toes and that is the way forward.'' ''Rangers and Celtic have done so well because they've assembled very strong squads and people will always get injured and suspended or lose form and this way we now have options that can cover us.'' ''We were successful last season but that is now in the past.

When the players came in this morning we told them that they've had a taste of what it is like, and now they have to try and sustain it, like Aberdeen did in the 1980's.'' McKinnon will add experience to a relatively young squad, more so with the loss of Neil Pointon, and the 32-year-old hopes his time in Holland will have helped him as a player, but he, too, recognises even winning a starting place will be difficult.

''I was at the cup final and I thought Gary Naysmith was outstanding, so I know how difficult it is going to be just to get a place in the team.

I was treated well in Holland, but the time was right for me to come back, and this is a big club with big ambitions.'' Jefferies also refused to rule out further signings over the next couple of weeks, although he admitted he had nobody specific in mind at present.

qSt Johnstone have brought Darren Dods in to ease their defensive crisis for next season.

Manager Paul Sturrock swooped yesterday to sign the Hibs defender for around #40,000.

Dods has signed a three-year deal and will go straight into the side when the season kicks off.

Club captain Jim Weir is already ruled out until Christmas after undergoing an achilles operation.

And fellow centre half Alan Kernaghan will miss several games, while he recovers from a hernia operation.

Dods, 23, will line up in a new-look defence with youngsters Danny Griffin or Stuart McCluskey.

The Saints boss has already tied up Hamilton keeper Allan Ferguson to cover for Alan Main, who could be out for up to three months.

He is also running the rule over several foreign imports during pre-season training.

Taken from the Herald