St Johnstone have entered signing discussions with their trialist midfielder Daniel Phillips, Callum Davidson confirmed.
The former Watford man impressed in a closed-doors game against Arbroath on Monday evening after spending over a week training at McDiarmid Park.
Davidson isn’t putting all his eggs in one basket but revealed “there are a lot of promising signs”.
“Daniel did well,” said the Perth boss.
“He had opportunities to sign for clubs in England but wanted to come up here to show us what he could do.
“He’s gone back down the road for the minute.
“It’s something we’re looking at and there are a lot of promising signs.
“We’ll have a chat with him and his agent and see where we are.
“We’re still considering other players as well.
“We need to make sure the additions are right to improve what we’ve got.”
Red cards
Phillips came through the Chelsea and Watford academies and is a Trinidad and Tobago regular.
Most of his domestic first team experience was gained on loan at League One Gillingham last season.
“He’s had a few sendings off (three),” said Davidson. “Which he’ll have to be careful about.
Daniel Phillips (on loan from #Watford to #Gillingham) has become the first player to earn 3 league red cards in a season since 2018/19, when both Max Power (#Sunderland) and Ben Pearson (#Preston) hit that total.
— FL Power Rankings (@FLPowerRankings) March 8, 2022
“But I think that tells you about the type of player he is.
“He’s actually very good on the ball as well as being able to get about the pitch and make tackles. He’s played at a good level and is physically very strong.
“He’s a naturally fit guy so he’s close to match fitness. He’d be ready to go.”
Meanwhile Davidson revealed that the net is being cast wide in a bid to land a new centre-forward.
“There’s nothing new to report at the moment,” he said.
“A lot of teams are after a striker.
“Things are changing all the time and players become available a couple of games into the season.
“We’ll keep doing our homework – in Britain and abroad as well.
“Our team is evolving and we need to make sure we get the player who fits us best.”
Moving on
Murray Davidson will miss Saturday’s clash with Motherwell after Saints decided against appealing his red card in the defeat to Hibs
“I spoke to a few people and because both tackles could have been red cards we’ve decided to move on,” said Callum Davidson.
“Muzz is a big player for us – he’s brilliant on the defensive side of things, making tackles and winning headers.
“We’ve got a couple of guys desperate to play. We’ve got competition.”
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