Broque Watson wants to help Cove Rangers climb the leagues after penning a two-and-a-half-year deal with the League 2 leaders.
Former Celtic trainee Watson signed from Annan Athletic on Friday and made his debut in the 2-2 draw with Albion Rovers at the weekend.
He had played against Cove just the week before at the Balmoral Stadium, with a whirlwind week seeing manager Paul Hartley bring him back to the club in just six days.
Watson, who has also been on the books of Motherwell and was on trial at Fleetwood Town last summer, wants to be part of Cove’s ambitious journey in the SPFL.
He said: “They’re a club with great ambition – that’s why I’m more than happy to commit for two-and-a-half years.
“I knew they were one of the top teams in the Highland League and they’ve come up to League 2 and blown other teams out of the water. It’s a big bonus as I want to play for the best team I possibly can.
“Promotion is the biggest target. Hopefully I can climb the leagues with Cove Rangers.”
Hartley’s pursuit of the 20-year-old started after he impressed in the 6-1 win for Annan over Cove at Galabank in November.
He stood out again in the return fixture in the Granite City less than a week before the transfer window closed, with Hartley moving quickly to start negotiations with Watson.
The winger added: “From the game we beat them 6-1, he was really interested in myself. He’s someone I’m really pleased to work with.
“It was Sunday, the day after the game at Cove. The manager gave me a call to say Annan had given them permission to speak to me. Everything was done so quickly.
“Paul had a really good career himself and when he was at Celtic, sometimes he would come and watch us train. There was potentially a chance for me to go on loan to Dundee when he was there, but that never worked out.”
Watson was let go by Celtic in 2018, after 12 years at the club, and joined the Steelmen’s reserve side. He spent the second half of last season on loan at Darren Young’s East Fife before again finding himself out of contract in the summer.
Annan came calling after a stint training with Fleetwood’s under-23s. Watson did not cross paths with Town manager Joey Barton, however, as the first-team were on a pre-season training camp in Portugal.
Watson said: “I was down there for a week or two and it was really good. Stephen Crainey was their under-23s coach, so there was a Celtic connection there.
“I came back up at the end of Betfred Cup when a lot of teams had spent their budgets, so I’m grateful Annan gave me the chance to play.”
