Conor O’Keefe felt he had to turn down Lowland League clubs to test himself in League One with Peterhead.
Former Elgin City winger O’Keefe joined alongside Robbie McGale last week, becoming Jim McInally’s first summer signing.
O’Keefe had offers from Cowdenbeath, Darvel and East Kilbride to drop down a division after spending last season in League Two.
However he had finished the season training with Peterhead’s Glasgow-based players, after being left out of the first-team picture at Elgin as he had turned down the offer of a new contract.
McInally got to see him first-hand and was convinced to bring him on board, with O’Keefe to showcase his talents at the next level.
‘I want to be at the highest level I can’
“Going up to League One is a great opportunity,” he said. “I’m looking forward to it, especially with some of the teams coming down from the Championship.
“I played a bounce game with Peterhead at the end of the season and the gaffer liked what he saw. He got in touch about 10 days ago to offer a contract.
“There were a few teams interested but I want to be at the highest level I can. I believe in my ability and want to test myself at the next level.
“I’m hoping to come in and make an impact straight away and come back as fit as I can. I wasn’t playing at the end of the season but I’ll make sure there’s no stone unturned for coming back.”
O’Keefe started his career at St Mirren and also turned out for Annan Athletic and Stranrear before joining Elgin in 2019.
He is reunited at Balmoor with close friend Andy McDonald, who he came through the ranks with at St Mirren and also played alongside at Borough Briggs.
“He is one of my closest friends and he said it’d be a great move if I could come,” added O’Keefe. “He said it’s a great club to progress at.
“He came in from Elgin and didn’t know who it was going to pan out. But he’s now a mainstay in the team.
“There’s a lot of us in our early 20s (at Peterhead), so there’ll be plenty of legs in the team.”
The winger only featured in six games for Elgin since the turn of the year. O’Keefe had told manager Gavin Price he would be moving on at the end of his deal and the Black and Whites boss opted to look at some of his other squad players who were under contract for next season.
“The first two-and-a-half years were brilliant,” said O’Keefe. “I told the manager in January I would like to move on and he said he wanted to look at guys who were going to be here.
“I was doing a run every Tuesday night and training with Simon and the Glasgow boys on a Thursday to stay fit.”