Cove Rangers boss Paul Hartley insists there is open competition for all positions in his side – including the goalkeepers.
Stuart McKenzie has been the regular number one since Cove joined the SPFL in 2019 and has not missed a minute of competitive action.
However, this summer Hartley has brought in Kyle Gourlay, who was with Hamilton Accies in the Premiership last season and came through the ranks at Dundee.
McKenzie started the Premier Sports Cup games against Stirling Albion and Peterhead, while Gourlay was impressive in the 3-0 defeat against Hearts at Tynecastle.
Hartley said: “You don’t just think about the outfield players – it’s a battle for every position, including the keepers. They’re able to show who wants to be number one.
“I’ve got to see who’s performing to the best of their ability and then make a decision.
“You need competition all over the pitch. That’s the norm and what we’re trying to do.”
🧤 We are delighted to confirm Derek Soutar has been appointed as our new goalkeeping coach
Derek joins with immediate effect and will be in the dugout for the first time this afternoon at Balmoor Stadium pic.twitter.com/IJYG8Bz1Pm
— Cove Rangers FC (@CoveRangersFC) July 17, 2021
Gourlay and McKenzie had been working by themselves for the last couple of weeks, following the departure of goalkeeping coach Alan Combe to Dundee.
However, Cove announced his successor on Saturday, with former Dark Blues and Aberdeen stopper Derek Soutar joining the club.
Soutar runs his own goalkeeper coaching academy and has previous experience working with the youth teams at Dundee United.
Hartley added: “It’s nice to get someone in of Derek’s experience. We had a good chat and felt he was the right fit for us.
“He’ll get to work straight away with the keepers and we felt it was important to get someone in and working with them before the league season starts.”
Cove finish their League Cup group tonight against Inverness at the Balmoral Stadium, still looking for their first win.
While the focus is geared towards preparing for the start of the League One season on July 31, Hartley is demanding an improvement from the disappointing 3-1 defeat to Peterhead at the weekend.
He added: “We want to sign off with a good result and a good performance. Saturday wasn’t a good performance, even though we had chances I don’t think we played well.
“You have to take responsibility as a player. We take it as managers when we don’t always get it right. Saturday was the worst we’ve played for a while.”
Striker Mitch Megginson will be assessed prior to the game, after coming off with a knee complaint against the Blue Toon. Ryan Strachan and Jamie Masson will be out.