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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
David Irvine

Kris Doolan provides Partick Thistle transfer update as Williamson move close

Kris Doolan is hopeful new faces will arrive at Partick Thistle this week as he nears a loan deal for Ben Williamson.

The Jags boss is keen to add to his squad after several notable departures at the end of the season.

Wasiri Williams and Scott Robinson have already signed on at Firhill for a second tilt at promotion from the Championship - and they could be joined by Rangers kid Williamson in the coming days.

Doolan is planning to add extra numbers to his squad throughout the summer window with "a couple" additions close but has revealed he is happy to play the long game this summer.

"Ideally as many as I could get," said Doolan when quizzed on the number of new signings he'd like at Firhill.

"I think there will be a couple coming in relatively soon, relatively quickly which will be good.

"It'll be great to get them in because we want to get people in before the league cup games get going.

"But I understand how the window works. Every manager you speak to will say the same, it's a slow window. As much as it's frantic and 24 hours a day, it's actually quite slow in terms of getting things done.

"I've got  a couple who will come in, that'll be exciting and boost the group again. 

"Then we'll just keeping working on it because the window lasts for a long time. If you jump in too quickly sometimes it's not the right thing to do.

"I am trying to strategically work my way through who I want. I am not just going to sign anybody because I don;t think that's what benefits Partick Thistle. We have to be selective in who we bring in and who can make us better."

Among those who left the club at the end of the season were captain Ross Docherty and key contributors Kyle Turner, Scott Tiffoney and Kevin Holt.

While Doolan dreamt of promotion and subsequently retaining the players, he is acutely aware that they could have left regardless. However, he is confident there is still the necessary experience and ability for another successful season.

He explained: "I understand football. You lose players at the end of every season. We could have gone up and still lost players.

"That's the way football is, it's juts the nature of the game that players will come and go.

"Obviously, we wanted to go up and hopefully retain these players but it wasn't to be.

"I don't think it has affected the morale. If you look at the characters who are still here; you've got Brian Graham, [Stuart] Bannigan, [Aaron] Muirhead these are guys who are the heartbeat of the football club and will demand standards from everybody else."

For Doolan, the short break in the off-season was a welcome reprieve after being thrust into the manager's set in the Firhill dugout.

But he is optimistic the turbulent - and emotionally draining play-off final loss  - time in charge will only benefit him in the long run.

"Some managers in their full career don't have to go through half of what I have been through," admitted Doolan. "The ups and the downs...football changes daily, there are always challenges every day that we have to meet head-on and have to fix and I'm happy to do that.

"Everything is a learning curve for me and I expect that for everybody.

"I don't expect players to come in and think they know everything, I expect them to come in and learn the same way I will learn, the staff will learn and the guys in the office will learn. Everybody is here to improve and I think that is the standards we set previously.

"That you don't come in and just know everything and I am willing to continue learning.

"You get thrust into these jobs and it's sink or swim and for me it has been a great experience in terms of what I've learned.

"I've probably learned more in the few months I have been in charge than you would learn across a full career as a manager at time because I have had to deal with so many different things."

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