Newest signing Cody David is pressing his case for a bigger role at Raith Rovers, according to manager Neill Collins.
The former Everton trainee was recruited last month as a free agent after it emerged that Lewis Vaughan would be out of action until February following hamstring surgery.
David has had to be patient as he has worked hard to improve his fitness following a summer searching for a new club.
The 23-year-old made his debut as a late substitute in the 2-1 defeat to Livingston on October 26 and again made a cameo appearance in the 79th minute of Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Partick Thistle.
But, after the striker previously sat out the wins over Airdrie and Ayr United, Collins has predicted greater involvement for the short-term signing in the coming weeks.
“Cody’s good,” said the Rovers boss, who fears he has lost Callum Smith to a long-term knee injury. “I think he’s been unfortunate in the games we’ve been winning.
“In the Airdrie game, we just didn’t feel we needed him. And the same against Ayr, again, at 2-0 up.
“But Cody’s trained really well. Especially at the start of last week; he was looking sharp.
“He’s definitely looking fitter, so he’s competing to get minutes.
“And I expect to see him on the pitch over the next couple of games.”
Options
Saturday’s stalemate at Firhill against Thistle was proof of the growing options Collins has at his disposal.
The Raith manager was able to shake up an underperforming side at the interval with a change of shape thanks to the introduction of on-loan Hearts youngster Finlay Pollock.
Ross Matthews and Lewis Gibson followed Pollock onto the pitch just after the hour mark before David was thrown into the fray for the closing stages.
Josh Mullin, meanwhile, was an unused substitute and the injured Sam Stanton, as well as Aidan Connolly, did not make the final 20-man selection.
“We’ve got good competition in the squad and the lads that are competing are competing hard for places,” added Collins.
“Cody is an out-and-out [number] nine and there’s Josh, Aidan up front as well. They’re all competing, they’re all training well, that’s all I can ask.
“That’s what we expect. We don’t expect anything else; working hard is a prerequisite.
“It’s not always the case in some places. But these boys’ attitudes have been good and they’ve continued to push, and that’s what we need.”
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