Malky Mackay is confident the increased competition for attacking places will get the best out of his Ross County side.
Mackay bolstered his pool during the January transfer window, with the top end of the pitch a key focus following a lack of goals during the opening six months of the campaign.
The late arrival of winger Gwion Edwards on loan from Wigan Athletic followed the capture of strikers Eamonn Brophy, Josh Stones and Simon Murray.
Jordan White, who has netted twice in his last three games, leads County’s scoring charts with six for the campaign.
Mackay believes having a wider range of attacking options will drive improved goal tally.
He said: “It just keeps everyone on their toes, with strength in depth and more competition for places.
“It keeps everyone hungry. It really helps us – Jordan White has had to carry the can on his own up front and we don’t need to do that now.
“In that wider area as well, we’ve got the ability to look at different options.
“Simon is experienced and Eamonn is the same, and having guys who have been there, seen it, done it really helps.”
County have drafted in experience
Having moved up to 10th place in the Premiership in recent weeks, the Staggies are aiming to kick on in the coming weeks.
Given January is often cited as being a challenging month for recruitment, Mackay is thrilled with the level of experience he was able to bring in during the month.
He added: “When we look at the business we’ve done, it is two youngsters and three men, which is in the area I wanted.
“We’ve brought in loans – Josh Stones from Wigan and Nohan Kenneh from Hibs – who are younger guys with lots of energy and potential.
“Then in the last three days of the window we managed to get three men in the door, with more than 600 competitive appearances between them.
“I’m absolutely delighted – we’ve got an experienced wide man in Gwion Edwards, and two proven Scottish goalscorers in Eamonn Brophy and Simon Murray.
“There was a lot of work. There were lots of man hours on it and conversations.
“(Chief executive) Steven Ferguson and I speak to Mr (Roy) MacGregor every day.
“We lost out on a couple along the way, like most teams do, but the transparency and communication inside the club means there is nothing getting done that raises any shocks or surprises.”
Staggies were not in market for first time loans
County’s two youngest additions during January, in the form of 20-year-old Kenneh and 19-year-old Stones, both have prior experience of first team football.
Mackay feels the Staggies’ new additions are ready to make an impact on his side.
He added: “It is not easy in January to get men of a certain level. There are lots of kids who would be coming out on first loans from reasonably big clubs.
“A lot were just getting into the under-23s, 18 years old, and we went through a lot of them, but tried to avoid that.
“They have potential, but just potential – and it’s a massive risk.”
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