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Malky Mackay feels early January business can help Ross County cause

Ross County boss Malky Mackay.
Ross County boss Malky Mackay.

Malky Mackay feels the cohesion in his squad will prepare Ross County for the final stretch of the Premiership season.

The Staggies ended the January transfer window with two arrivals, after Declan Drysdale and Kayne Ramsay arrived on loan deals early in the month.

There were also four outgoings, most notably the loss of on-loan Arsenal defender Harry Clarke who transferred to Hibernian on another temporary switch. Coll Donaldson, Alex Robertson and Tom Grivosti also moved on.

There was no late business in either direction prior to Monday’s deadline, confirming the Staggies will retain on-form winger Regan Charles-Cook until at least the end of the season.

Mackay hopes to reap the benefits of getting the bulk of his business done early in the window.

He said: “We didn’t lose any more. The fact that there are not a couple that were taken, or bid for, makes a big difference.

“Getting Kayne Ramsay and Declan Drysdale in at the start of the window means they are bedded into the club now.

Ross County defenders Declan Drysdale (left) and Kayne Ramsay.

“There was an awful lot of business done elsewhere on that last day. We saw the domino effect hit, which means people will be trying to bed into clubs over February.

“There are a lot of things involved in settling into not just the club, but the area.

“We had a huge turnover in the summer where we saw how much that takes.

“If you move to another part of the UK you’ve all of a sudden got a lot of different factors involved, other than doing the job you are employed to do.

“I’m delighted to get those two guys in early in the window. The rest of the squad is a group that, as we have seen over the last five or six days, are putting a lot of effort into what they are doing at the moment.

“I’m delighted with them.”

Staggies boss still hoping to add

Mackay revealed prior to the deadline he expects to add a free agent on a two-and-a-half year deal.

He confirmed he is still awaiting confirmation of the deal, adding: “That’s one we have been dealing with. It’s an ongoing situation we’ve got there.

Malky Mackay.

“If that comes off, great. As of right now I’ve got a squad that’s nearly fully fit, with a couple who have knocks.

“I will state the exact same again – if we don’t get people in that I think will hit the ground running and go straight into the team, and be someone that I think can impact our first team, January is not really the window for me.”

Mackay says another loan move he tried to finalise before the closure of the window fell through due to reasons outwith the Staggies’ control.

He added: “It wasn’t through lack of effort on our part, or the player’s part. It was just a situation that developed between the player and their club.

“There was nothing we could do about it and it didn’t happen.

“It was one that came up late, it wasn’t one we had been working on. We investigated it thoroughly and liked the look of it.

“I spoke to the player and he was keen, and the dialogue with the club was good as well.

“It was one of these things. Sometimes things like that happen quickly. You do a bit of homework and research, everybody talks to each other and everything is fine.

“But sometimes there’s a snag, and it was nothing to do with Ross County’s ambitions to get the player, or the player not wanting to come. Sometimes there are other factors that we’ve got nothing to do with, and no capability of helping.

“That’s what happened, otherwise we would have had somebody in.”