Dean Shiels hails Coleraine's big club links as doors open up for player recruitment

Dean Shiels believes Coleraine's move to a full-time set-up has "opened up many doors" for the club in terms of player recruitment. The Bannsiders have ramped up their transfer business this week with Kyle McClelland and Kirk McLaughlin joining Cameron Stewart as new arrivals at The Showgrounds.

Coleraine have cast their net far and wide looking for new additions as they move into a new ear. Head coach Shiels though insisted the capture of McClelland on loan from Hibs would not have happened if the club did not make the decision to move into a full-time model.

The new Showgrounds boss said clubs in England and Scotland are sitting up and taking notice of what the Bannsiders are doing, and they intend to use those contacts to strengthen their squad further.

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"I think that's the doors we've opened up with the new model we've created, which will help attract players," said Shiels. "We will hopefully earn the respect of these clubs by being more full-time. Kyle is a player we would have had no chance of getting if we had remained part-time.

"This new set-up has opened up a lot of doors for us in terms of recruitment. You build up relationships with clubs across the water, and now it's maybe time for us to use those contacts.

"With the signing of Kyle it's a prime example of the market we're in. We're having conversations with a lot of big clubs and letting them know that Coleraine is moving on and moving forward with the transition to full-time. In turn that will open up so many doors for us across the water."

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