Callum Hannah is confident he is getting ‘the best of both worlds’ as he looks to flourish on loan at Montrose.
The Raith Rovers defender joined the Gable Endies last month and made his fifth consecutive start in the Angus derby against Arbroath at the weekend.
The 19-year-old then captained Raith in Tuesday night’s 3-0 victory over Kirkcaldy & Dysart.
The friendly was arranged as part of Hannah’s move from the East of Scotland side to join Rovers 12 months ago.
Goals from Aidan Connolly, Callum Smith and Ross Matthews earned the Championship side a win against their part-time neighbours.
After a spell in the Lowland League with Albion Rovers last season, Hannah is determined to make the move of his loan spell at League One Montrose.
He told Courier Sport: “It’s a good level, to start with, at a club who are consistently around the play-offs for promotion to the Championship.
“They’ve got a good core group who have been there for a while.
“I knew what to expect and what it would be like, and in my position as a wing-back, it suits me perfectly. I can’t really ask for much more than that.
Hannah: ‘The progression is there’
“I was definitely open to the move. I got told a few days before and straight away I wanted to do it. It made perfect sense.
“It’s a good level where, going down to League One, the progression is there.
“In February, I went out on loan to Albion Rovers and played 11 x 90 minutes and a couple of other games.
“That was good. It did exactly what it needed to do. It made me a better player and got me game-time.
“From having that experience of being on loan before, I know how it can progress me as a player doing it again. That’s the aim.”
Hannah will continue to train with Raith during the week as well as training and playing with Montrose, and believes he can only benefit from both.
He added: “Training this season with guys like Lewis Stevenson and Paul Hanlon, I’ve been learning a lot.
“But nothing, no amount of training, can really prepare you for going into games.
“So, I’ll learn every week with Montrose and it’s important at my age – 19 – to keep learning.
‘Loads to learn’
“I’ve still got loads to learn and getting the chance to do that at a good level, against good players, is great for me.
“It’s a better level than it was at Albion Rovers, so it’s tough. But it can only make be better.
“It’s the best of both worlds for me. I train at Raith full-time and train with Montrose as well. And then play with Montrose on a Saturday.
“I’m getting absolutely everything I could ask for; it’s perfect.”
Conversation