Ambitious Thomson eyes SPL return

JASON THOMSON today revealed how he intends to convince top-level clubs he merits another shot at the Scottish Premier League after signing a pre-contract agreement with Raith Rovers.

The Hearts defender becomes a free agent next month and has already agreed to sign a one-year deal at Stark’s Park. He hopes to impress there next season and earn a return to the SPL, where he spent seven seasons in and around the first team at Tynecastle.

John McGlynn, the Raith manager, moved to sign Thomson permanently after he spent the last two months of the season on loan in Kirkcaldy. The 24-year-old is delighted at securing his future ahead of his wedding this afternoon and then a two-week honeymoon.

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However, he admitted he still harbours aspirations of returning to the top flight. “I definitely want to get back into the SPL if I can,” Thomson told the Evening News. “I want to have a good season next year and then somebody might take a chance on me, or I might get another contract at Raith. I’ll play it year by year.

“I’m really happy to get my future secured. I get married today and then I’m away on my honeymoon for two weeks, so I didn’t want to come back and still be looking for a team. That’s not the reason I rushed into signing, though. I played with Raith last season and I knew what I was getting, so I want to pick up where I left off. I’d worked with John as a youth player at Hearts and then last season at Raith. I’m just happy to have a full-time contract at Raith. It’s an ambitious club.”

Thomson’s influence during the final weeks of the season helped Raith climb the First Division table and allay relegation fears. The Fife club languished second bottom of the table when he arrived having won only six league matches.

With Thomson on board, they won five, drew four and lost just two of their last 11 fixtures to finish a respectable seventh.

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For a boyhood Jambo supporter like Thomson, leaving Hearts was always going to be a wrench, even though he was told in January that he was surplus to requirements.

“I’m not going to lie and say I’m not bothered. I would love to be at Hearts,” he admitted. “I watched them win the cup and I couldn’t think of anything better.

“I’d love to do that but I won’t get upset or jealous about it. I’m sad to be leaving but I’ve known about it for a while so that makes it easier to take. I had some good times there.

“Making my debut at 17 was a highlight, as were the games I played against Hibs. As a Hearts fan, you want to play in the derbies and I managed to do that quite a lot during my time there.”