Jim Duffy has praised his former forward Alex Samuel for proving his worth to Ross County and scoring a new contract with the Premiership club.
Experienced manager Duffy, who is now director of football at Clyde, enjoyed having the energetic Welshman in his ranks at Morton in season 2015-16 when he was on loan from Swansea City.
After spells at Stevenage and Wycombe Wanderers, Samuels made the move to the north of Scotland and Ross County in August 2021.
However, just six games into his Staggies career, he suffered a cruciate ligament injury, which kept him out for almost a year.
Encouraged by his Christian faith, Samuel dug deep, never threw in the towel and returned to the fold earlier this year.
He even persuaded County manager Malky Mackay not to send him on loan and he made 13 appearances as the Dingwall team won their battle against the drop – thanks to a last-gasp stunning play-off final recovery against Partick Thistle.
Samuel scored just once, in a 2-0 win against Livingston, but his displays were noted and key within some telling moments as County came from four points adrift at the foot of the table to staying up via the play-offs.
Four striking options for Mackay
Samuel was rewarded for his part and last month signed a two-year deal.
Duffy is thrilled for the 27-year-old and is sure he will make an impact in attack in the Premiership this term.
He said: “First for foremost, Alex is a tremendous person. I am delighted he get a new deal up at Ross County.
“He’s a real team player and his work ethic is exceptional. Like any manager, if you get that, you have a really good base to start from.
“He likes and enjoys that physical battle. He had a difficult time at Ross County when he was sidelined with injury, but from what I saw in the latter part of the season, he really made an impact.
“Hopefully, he can now have an injury-free time at Ross County. He has more competition now with Malky signing Simon Murray earlier this year and Eammon Brophy permanently last week. Big Jordan White is there too, who is another player I worked with years ago.
“I am delighted Alex is back playing – and I am sure Malky is as well. He provides good competition at the top end of the pitch. He has four very talented frontmen for next season. I am sure they will be a real threat next year.”
Samuels is tough rival for defenders
And Duffy insists no opponent will can relax when Samuel is on their case and praised the player’s strong mental attitude.
He said: “Alex doesn’t shy away from any challenges.
“He’s a Christian and his faith is very important to him.
“It’s another aspect to him as a person and he takes a lot of comfort and belief from his faith. It helps him when he has challenges in front of him.
“He can play through the middle or out when he has has to. When you play against him, you’re not going to get a minute’s peace. That’s for sure.
“He doesn’t allow defenders to relax into the game and he’s a really competitive player.”
Samuel ‘timed his run’ perfectly
Duffy hopes Samuel’s injury concerns are now fully in the past and tipped him to continue to be a fans’ favourite.
He added: “Any player arriving at a new club wants to come in and be fit and hit the ground running.
“Unfortunately that never happened for Alex, but at that really important part of the season when for example Eamonn Brophy (who was on loan from St Mirren) was injured, Malky needed that extra striker and Alex offered that.
“You could say he timed his run well in terms of the impact he made. And the team had a fantastic end to the season by staying in the Premiership.
“Fans always like players who give 100% for the jersey and Alex will absolutely do that.
“He is always popular with supporters because of his attitude and the Ross County fans I’m sure will be no different.”
After a full week of double sessions, County’s pre-season match schedule kicks off on Tuesday night with a trip to Highland League opponents Nairn County.