Ritchie delight as Jags start to see fruits of 'community' team
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Jags caretaker boss Brian Ritchie has spoken of his delight at the addition of Grantown-on-spey based player Cairn Giles.
The 21-year-old central defender initially joined the 'Strathspey in the Community' team in August after completing a successful summer campaign with Strathspey and Badenoch Welfare League champions, Boat of Garten Ospreys.
Appointed as head of football development in June, Ritchie began engaging the local community and linking with local welfare football clubs in a bid to bolster the club's position in the local area. This in turn led to the formation of the club's new 'community' team – a select of local players who have been training and playing together under the Jags banner during the winter months.
He said: "Cairn coming in is personally very pleasing for me. The idea behind putting a community team together in the first place was to provide players who want the opportunity to work hard and possibly gain a place with the first team squad the opportunity to do so.
"He has been fantastic for us since we set up the new community project and is a player we hope to see become a mainstay of the squad for years to come."
Giles, who may look to return to Ospreys in the summer, joins the Jags on a short-term deal until the end of the present season.
Ritchie added: "I'm very mindful that a promising player needs to be aware of what the requirements are of becoming a Highland League player, so to tie them up to a long term contract without them experiencing the Highland League first would be unfair.
"We have to remember that we play a huge part in keeping the welfare league alive in the local area, and we need to be respectful to players who may want to return to it over the summer."
