Raith boss Gary Locke admits that while it was disappointing to lose Lewis Toshney to Championship rivals Dundee United, he wasn’t going to stand in the way of a player who was determined to leave Rovers.
The 24-year-old was one of the Kirkcaldy club’s key performers last season and he was rewarded with a one-year contract extension by former Stark’s manager Ray McKinnon before he moved to take over in the Tannadice hot-seat.
Ironically, that meant that when United and McKinnon made a move for Toshney, Raith were entitled to a fee for the player and after rejecting three previous bids, they finally accepted a fourth five-figure sum on Tuesday.
Locke insisted the club had no choice other than to let the player leave, especially after he had submitted a transfer request, however following the transfer, the manager now has increased funds in which to bolster his squad.
Locke has made no secret of his desire to bring in striking reinforcements and he is currently running the rule over 6ft 3in Wigan teenager Sam Cosgrove at the club’s Glenrothes training ground.
The manager said: “It was disappointing not to be able to work with Lewis but, from my point of view, you come in as a new manager and when a player tells you he wants to go to another club – doesn’t want to play for Raith – then it is not really a difficult decision.
“He had a fantastic season here last year, did really well, and he goes with our best wishes.Unfortunately for us he didn’t see his future at Raith. If that is the case, then people need to move on.
“There is no point in me working with an unhappy player. I want a group of players who want to be here.
“It’s not ideal because he is going to one of our rivals in the league but, at the same time, the club has money for him.
“He only had a year on his contract so could have waited until Christmas time to sign a pre-contract.
“Instead, we have got some money for him which we can use to bring someone else in. We need to replace him, so that frees up Lewis’s wage and we have a bit of money.
“The board have said if we can get players in, we can use that. We could have lost him for nothing (if McKinnon hadn’t given him a new deal).
“Lewis came to speak to me and made his feelings perfectly clear. For me, that made the decision for me.
“We’re quite well off in the areas he played and we have young David Bates coming through as well, so it is a chance for him to stake a claim in the team.”
Raith had a couple of big injury scares following Tuesday night’s friendly at Forfar with Mark Stewart picking up a thigh strain while Kevin McHattie had to be stretchered off with a knee injury.
Thankfully, both should make relatively quick recoveries.
Locke said: “Both players are all right. They won’t be fit for Saturday, but hopefully will be back on Tuesday.
“Pre-season games are not so much about results, they are about fitness and getting through the game injury-free – so the disappointing thing is we picked up two injuries. And we don’t have a massive squad.
“We had a couple of young lads on the bench who came in from school.
“We thought Kevin had got a bad one. He has been on crutches for a few days, but those fears haven’t come true and he will work with the physio over the next few days and the weekend and hopefully be OK for next week.”
Meanwhile, Locke admitted he would not be pursuing his interest in former Kilmarnock defender Mark Connolly who had been training with Raith.
The player has had offers from clubs down south and looks set for move to England.
