Dan O’Reilly insists he is ready to commit his long-term future to Raith Rovers after declaring he is ‘loving’ his time at the club.
The Irishman proved to be the Stark’s Park side’s Fife derby hero with a double in Tuesday’s 2-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic.
After chipping in with key contributions in attack, the 28-year-old’s defensive qualities were also clear at East End Park.
But he currently has only one game left on the short-term deal he penned as an emergency signing in November.
Manager Ian Murray is eager to extend that agreement and both parties look to be on the same page with regards an extension.
And O’Reilly, who before joining Rovers had been without a club since leaving Hamilton in the summer, has opened the door for a stay beyond the current campaign.
He said: “There’s one more game, against Airdrie [as things stand].
“I will talk to the people at the club and we’ll see what happens.
‘Get it sorted’
“I am really enjoying it, I’m loving it. It’s a great group of players and staff.
“There’s real togetherness and it feels like I’ve been here much longer than six weeks.
“Hopefully we can get it sorted.
“You want a bit of stability. You don’t want to be going from here to somewhere else.
“When a team is going well, you obviously want to be a part of it.
“It’s not just my decision, it’s the club’s. I feel really part of it and felt that straight away in the first couple of weeks.
“I would be happy to stay here longer [than this season]. I’m really happy.”
O’Reilly’s goals helped keep Raith three points clear of Dundee United at the top of the SPFL Championship.
It was also a fourth straight Fife derby triumph for the Kirkcaldy outfit.
After consecutive draws against Ayr United and Arbroath, it was a return to winning ways just when some were questioning whether a mid-season wobble was in the offing.
‘Not up to our standard’
And given the concession of avoidable goals in the 4-4 draw with Ayr and after being 2-0 ahead against Arbroath, O’Reilly has confessed it was a pleasing response.
He added: “It’s a great way to start the year.
“Look, the last two games we’ve been okay but not up to our standard.
“I thought that was much better [on Tuesday]. Even when they scored, we were in control.
“We conceded a soft goal, I felt; it happened very quick.
“But as a team we looked more solid and secure. I don’t think they really looked like scoring after we went 2-1 up.”
Of United closing the gap at the top of the table, he added: “I don’t think we felt under pressure. Maybe [from] outside, not internally.
“We just knew we could play better and if we did play better we’d get wins.
“We hadn’t been our best in terms of passing and when we’d gone ahead in the previous two games we didn’t look secure.
‘There was no uproar’
“I felt that was different against Dunfermline. It’s a great win and great performance overall.
“Even when we did slip up a little in the last two games, there was no uproar which is good.
“It’s a realisation of where we are. Teams are going to do that and we didn’t get beat.
“So to come out and get a win against Dunfermline was massive.”
