New St Johnstone striker Luke Jephcott may be a different type of player to the one Graham Carey remembers at Plymouth Arygle.
But the Irishman is confident that a penalty box finisher is exactly the type of player the Perth side need.
“We’ve seen already the quality he’s got,” said Carey.
“He looks really sharp, even though he’s not had a club in the summer.
“Luke was a young boy at Plymouth when I played with him – he was more of a winger back then. He was really lively.
“Going to Truro on loan would have really helped him.
“We used to play a lot of those teams in pre-season and it was really tough and physical – proper men’s football.
“He’s transformed into a centre-forward and his record down south is really good.
“Hopefully he’ll get plenty of goals for us.
“He was breaking into the team in my last season.
“We had a really strong, experienced team so you needed to be a good player to get in it.
“Looking back, he was a very good finisher off both feet, so I can understand that his career had developed along those lines.
“It’s not about what he does in the box – he’s got a really good touch and links up well.
“You could see on Saturday (in the 1-0 defeat at Stenhousemuir) that we got plenty of balls into the box but we didn’t really have anything on the end of them.
“Hopefully he’ll help us in that regard.
“He’ll be a real asset.
“This will be a good move for him. He’ll fit in well here.
“We had a strong, settled starting XI that finished the season well.
“The manager is adding quality to that with Dimi (Mitov) and now Luke.
“A club our size can’t have a squad as big as the one we had last year – 25 first team players is too much.”
No room for error
Carey knows that a big improvement is needed following Saturday’s season-opening defeat to Stenhousemuir.
And if hopes of progressing to the knockout rounds of the Viaplay Cup are to be intact for back-to-back home games next week, victory at Alloa on Saturday is non-negotiable.
“We just weren’t sharp enough in the final third last weekend,” he said.
“That’s probably one of the last things that comes when you’re moving from pre-season into the cup – sharpness.
“We’ll be looking to improve that on Saturday and get the win we need.”
More goals
Carey is being deployed high up the pitch by Steven MacLean and he’s optimistic that he’ll be a game-changing influence on the Perth side over the course of the season.
“I’m feeling really fit,” he said.
“The more minutes I get, the sharper I’ll be.
“I thought I ended last season well.
“I know I need to chip in with more goals – get on the end of crosses. If I can add that to my game, hopefully it will be a really good season.
“I was definitely getting more opportunities in the last few weeks of the season. I just didn’t take them.
“That’s definitely an aim.”
