Paul Lawson says impressive performances against Banks o’ Dee led to the Aberdeen side pursuing Ethan Cairns.
Cairns, 19, spent the first half of the campaign and last term with Forres Mechanics – where he stood out to Lawson and co-manager Josh Winton in games against Dee.
Lawson said: “The twice Ethan has played against us this season, he’s been excellent, so when you speak about players that stays in your mind.
“You don’t know how it will work out, but you make the enquiry and speak to the player and see how it progresses.
Banks o’ Dee are delighted to announce the loan signing of forward Ethan Cairns, 19, from Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC for the rest of the season. We would like to thank Inverness Caledonian Thistle for their support with this Temporary Transfer. Welcome to the club Ethan. pic.twitter.com/CmQczoluFW
— Banks o' Dee FC (@banksodee_fc) January 10, 2024
“It’s a big commitment to travel from Inverness for training, but Ethan has the right attitude and he’s keen to come and play for us.
“When we made the enquiry, we weren’t sure if it was going to go anywhere, because in general terms Caley Thistle have teams closer to them that they can loan players to.
“But they’ve been great to deal with and I know a couple of guys there, and then when we spoke to Ethan, he was keen to come.
“It’s a platform for him to show what he can do and then see what happens for him moving forward.”
Extra options were required
Lawson and Winton were keen to add to their attacking options this month.
Dayshonne Golding scored seven goals for Dee after joining on loan from Cove Rangers in October, but that deal has expired, with Golding subsequently being loaned to Elgin City.
Lawson added: “At the start of the season, we were keen to bolster the forward areas and we ended up signing Dayshonne Golding and Garry Wood in the same week.
“They’ve both done well for us, and as much as we were hoping Dayshonne might stay, we always knew it was likely to be a short-term thing.
“I can’t praise him highly enough for the way he went about things and what he brought to the team.
“I hope he does well at Elgin and kicks on, but we were looking around to see who we could bring in.
“Ethan’s a player we’ve spoken about, and when we discovered he may be available, we were quick to act on it.”
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