Kevin Rutkiewicz believes the capture of former Falkirk captain Gary Miller could prove “invaluable” to East Kilbride’s promotion push.
The 34-year-old became Kilby’s ninth summer signing last week when he put pen to paper on a one-year deal.
And as the club returned for pre-season training ahead of the new Lowland League season next month, Rutkiewicz revealed the midfielder has been on his radar for a while and will be a key asset.
He said: “I’m happy to have brought in Gary Miller. He’s a guy I spoke to last year when I was manager at Stirling Albion and he was still very much in Falkirk’s thoughts.
“We’re well aware that we have signed a lot of younger lads, and we do feel you need older heads in there.
“Gary isn’t arriving here having only played four or five games, I think he played 34 league games last season, so he’s active, and that’s where the argument comes in about his age.
“A 35- or 36-year-old who hadn’t played a lot of football in the last 12 months would probably be a wee bit risky.
“But I feel that Gary’s qualities are exactly what we need – his aggression, communication and organisation skills, being that older head – will hopefully be invaluable.”
Rutkiewicz has overseen something of an overhaul at K-Park, bringing in goalkeeper Jack Ruddy, defenders Billy Mortimer, Stephen Bronsky, Jonathan Page and Conor Morgan; midfielders Ronan Hughes, Andy Black and striker Bob McHugh.
Striker Joao Victoria has re-signed, and Ross Taylor, Aidan McDonald, Ross Smith, Reece McGuire and Aidan Fellowes have been promoted from the development squad.
So now he can be more selective about who they bring in.
Rutkiewicz, whose side face Forth Wanderers in their first friendly on Saturday, added: “The discussion we’ve got to have now are with the younger group, the academy lads, and we have to assess them over the next fortnight, just to see where they truly are, next to someone like Gary Miller, Bob McHugh or Ronan Hughes, to see how they measure up.
“We’ll make decisions that might see some of them going out on loan, which would mean we’re light in some areas.
“We’ll definitely be looking, we’ll be active, but we’re at a stage now where we can be less panicked.
“I think we can be very selective about who we speak to, I think the positions will present themselves to us over the next week or two.”
Follow Lanarkshire Live Sport on Twitter via @LanLiveSport, like us on Facebook or find us on Instagram for the latest sports news, pictures and video.
