Falkirk: McKinnon hails ‘talented’ Louis Longridge

Longridge returned to the club this week on a short-term deal until January – a move which suited both parties – after spending last season with rivals Dunfermline.

The attacker scored seven goals in 29 games in his first spell with the Bairns – including a double in the 6-1 demolition of Dundee United – after joining on loan from Hamilton Accies in November 2017.

McKinnon, who signed him whilst at Raith Rovers, admitted they had been after the 28-year-old’s signature for a number of weeks, with Longridge also in training at Scottish Premiership side St Mirren during the summer.

McKinnon said: “We’re delighted to get him in here. The fans and I know what his qualities are.

“He is a talented boy, a good pro and everything we are looking for in a footballer at Falkirk.

“He is the type of player that can give us a spark in attacking areas, he is quick, skilful and I know he was extremely popular during his previous spell at Falkirk.

“It gives us good options in the wider areas and he can play inside as well.

“He’s a proven good Championship player at least and we’re delighted to get him signed.”

McKinnon looked ahead to the first home game of the season with Dumbarton on Saturday and admitted his side might have to be patient as teams put men behind the ball in League One following their stalemate with Peterhead last weekend.

He said: “We’re going to have to work harder to break teams down and that is why it’s important we score the first goal.

“Nobody is going to come here and be super open against us – that would be suicide, so I’m expecting teams to make it difficult for us, we just need to be patient.

“I understand the expectation from fans. We have built this team in four or five weeks. We are working extremely hard on our patterns of play and that takes a while to bed in.”

Mark Durnan, Lewis Toshney and Ross MacLean are struggling with knocks and are unlikely to play on Saturday.