Ayr Advertiser | Sport | 10 players to be shown door at Ayr

Sunday, 7th September, 2008

Published: Tuesday, 22nd April, 2008 11:00

10 players to be shown door at Ayr

By Stewart McConnell

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AMBITIOUS Brian Reid this week lifted the lid on the extent of the end of season clearout at Ayr United with at least TEN new faces set to be coming in and most out of contract players looking to be heading for the exit door.

Alloa Athletic midfielder Scott Agnew is among those understood to be targeted by manager Reid and assistant Scott MacKenzie as they aim to put their stamp on the side and clear the decks for an assault on the Barr’s Irn-Bru Division Two title next season.

The Honest Men have also been linked with talented young Queens Park striker Martin Ure although Reid denied any interest, and central defender Martyn Campbell is understood to be in line for a new contract offer.

Reid, while delighted with the effort of the players in Saturday’s 3-1 victory against Queens Park knows major changes are need for the Somerset Park club to stand any chance of challenging in the top half of the league.

The manager said: “I would say we will need at least 10 new faces for next season and myself and Scott are actively looking for players at the moment.

“Only five are under contract and we have spoken to the board about bringing in quality players for next season and while we are not talking about £50,000 a player we want to make the club an attractive place to come.

“We would like a mixture of youth and experience, whether that is from the SPL or the likes of the First, Second and Third Divisions, where there are a lot of good players.

“I am looking to extend some of the contracts but some players will be moving on. For the last couple of years we have been in the bottom half of the league and for a club like Ayr United that is simply not good enough.

"We want a squad capable of either challenging for the title, which is a big ask or at the very least challenging for a place in the promotion playoffs. I am ambitious young manager who wants to put my stamp on the club and you have to aim high.

Asked about Agnew, Reid said: “Scott is a player I admire but is at the moment under contract at Alloa Athletic. I have not enquired about Martin Ure.”

Reflecting on Saturday’s win, which was the sixth from the last seven on the road, Reid said: “We played well and it was good to see Ryan Stevenson and Alex Williams on the scoresheet and while I would like to see more players scoring they have done really well for us this season.

“I was impressed with the attitude and effort of the players and we could have won more easily had we taken our chances, although I won’t make a big deal of that. I thought our young player Alistair Woodburn, who is only 18 played well in his first start.”

Looking ahead to Saturday’s visit of playoff bound Airdrie United, Reid said: “We are unbeaten against them this season and while we might experiment a bit it would be nice to end the season in front of our fans with a win.”