PADDY ACCEPTS NEW CONTRACT FOR NEXT SEASON

PADDY SIGNS

Popular Queens defender Paddy Atkinson has accepted a new contract for next season and joins the growing list of players retained. Derekl Allen is expected to sign a new contract soon whilst O'Neill,McLaughlan and Paton are still undecided. If those players wish to remain part-time I doubt if they will get better terms elsewhere but if they wish to go full-time then there is very little Queens can do to persuade them to stay at Palmy. The O'Neill situation is interesting as he was amongst the last to sign last season. He is now back  staying in Glasgow and having an excellent job he will be reluctant to go full-time despite having been reported talking to St Mirren. Paton and McLaughlan on the other hand would be keen to sign with a full-time club. Whether any full-time outfit would be willing to take a gamble on the latter two players, considering the number of players on the market, remains to be seen. My own personal view is that all three players will sign new contracts at the end of the season. The situation with O'Connor is unclear but the indications are that he is a free agent and can move elsewhere if he wishes. Under the present economic climate and the abundance of players looking for clubs I would be very surprised to see Queens lose any players to their rivals.

JOHN JO UNDECIDED