David Wilson was so eager to get his move to Peterhead completed he was happy to dip into his own pocket to make it happen.
Wilson joined the Blue Toon last month on a two-year deal, having been a free agent since leaving Elgin City over the summer.
Aberdeen-based Wilson turned down the chance of a new deal at Borough Briggs and opted to depart, however the League Two outfit were still entitled to training compensation as he is under 23.
He had been training with Peterhead for six weeks while the two clubs worked out a financial package – believed to be £5,000 – with Wilson chipping in to get the deal over the line.
Wilson said: “I put a lot of money towards it. It’s a lot of money for me to pay but I didn’t really have too much choice. After leaving Elgin in the summer I couldn’t really go back two or three months later.
“It took a lot of time for me to make a decision but in the end it was a no-brainer, as otherwise I’d have been frozen out of the game. It was the only decision I could make, to get it over and done with and move on.
“I just felt like I wasn’t developing at Elgin. In the last few months, between being out of the team and all the travelling it was just becoming a wee bit too much. I wasn’t enjoying it nearly as much as I should have and knew it was definitely the right thing to move on.
“Paying the money obviously made it a bit harder than it normally would have been but in the end it was a no-brainer.
“It was a relief to just get things over the line. It took a little bit of time but there was a willingness to do it from both sides, two or three weeks before it actually happened.
“I was confident and hopeful it was going to happen but until you sign on the dotted line, there’s always a little bit of doubt at the back of your head.
“It’s been a really good two or three games and I’m buzzing to be at Peterhead.”
✍️ Welcome David Wilson
We are delighted to announce the signing of defender David Wilson on a 2 year deal, who had previously been at Elgin City.
The 21 year old will go straight into the squad for tomorrow's game against Queen's Park. pic.twitter.com/KYr5bkwvTS
— Peterhead FC (@pfcofficial) September 24, 2021
He came on as a substitute against Queen’s Park and started in the 5-0 win over Dumbarton last weekend, as Peterhead produced a stunning display to overturn the high-flying Sons.
A bounce game against Cowdenbeath helped provide some much-needed minutes on Thursday after an extended period without regular football.
Wilson added: “At the start of my time at Elgin I was playing a lot but towards the end I wasn’t in the team. When you’re not in the team you lose confidence and I don’t think I realised how much I lost until I did have a fresh start, firstly when I trained with Dumbarton and then at Peterhead.
“It’s something you don’t realise how much it affects you, until you go somewhere else. I feel so much more confident and refreshed for the two years at Peterhead.
“You can do all the running and work by yourself but match-fitness is totally different. Hopefully with more minutes under my belt I should get better and fitter. It was definitely a shock to the system, the first game back.”
Wilson made 58 appearances for Elgin after making his debut in the 2018 League Cup. The 21-year-old also had a loan spell at Highland League side Lossiemouth and is a graduate of the Scottish FA Performance School at Hazlehead Academy.
There is excitement about what Peterhead can achieve this season, with their young squad hopefully putting an end to a difficult start to the campaign.
Wilson added: “We’re definitely looking up the table. It’s such a competitive league this year and it seems everyone can beat everyone.
“First things first, we need to get away from ninth place as that’s not where we want to be at all. But if we can sneak in at the play-offs at the end of the year then that wouldn’t surprise me, as there’s the quality in the dressing room to do that.”