Livingston boss David Martindale says he’s hopeful ‘natural leader’ Tom Parkes can thrive at the club next season.
The 30-year-old centre-back’s debut season in Scotland hasn’t exactly gone to plan with a string of injuries limiting him to just 11 appearances and he hasn’t featured since December.
The former Bristol Rovers and Exeter City defender is set to have exploratory knee surgery in a bid to fix a recurring issue and Martindale is hopeful he can be at his best next season.
Speaking to the Courier, the boss said: “Tom’s going in for a tidy up on his knee. It’s more an exploration to see what it is. There’s too much inflammation - he trains then it comes back and it just repeats so we really need to get that tidied up.
“I do believe a fully fit Parkesy makes us better. He’s a natural leader which is hard to come by these days. The modern day footballer is pretty quiet but you need leaders in your team - the more the better.
“He is definitely one, so I’m keen to get him back in and up and running for pre-season because I think he’s got the potential to be a big player for us and we’ve not had that benefit this year.”
He added: “He really enjoys being up here and he enjoys being at the club. He loves the way we do things here and we can’t keep him out the gym.
“He’s played all his career in League One and Two in England and never been to the gym because at that level it’s just play, recover, travel but he’s seeing the benefits of the gym work and the way we do things here.
“It would be good to get him back involved and be part of the team for next season.”
Martindale also revealed that striker Jack Hamilton has been offered a new deal but admitted he has been priced out of the Scottish market, leaving him to look elsewhere in the summer - including Russia.
He said: “I need to look at different markets. Ivan (Konovalov) has come in and fitted in perfectly so Russia is a market I need to look at - what’s going on there shouldn’t be held against individual people.
“I know there’s value for money there and in other markets outwith Britain which I need to try and utilise a bit more.
“I feel in the Scottish market, I just get outpriced and it’s difficult to get guys who are ready to hit the ground running from the Championship here.
“I’ve not identified anyone up here who I feel can make us better that, to be honest, I can afford.”
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