Ex-Sunderland, Sheffield Wednesday and Derby County man signs for Scottish third-tier strugglers
Cove Rangers boss Paul Hartley says new signing Chris Maguire will add quality and key experience to his young squad
Cove Rangers manager Paul Hartley says new signing Chris Maguire will bring vital know-how and maturity to his squad after the former Sunderland forward made his debut at Balmoral Stadium.
Maguire, now 36, has been without a club since leaving Eastleigh at the end of last season but has continued training while assessing his options. Hartley moved to bring him in on a short-term basis, handing him his first appearance from the bench in Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Alloa Athletic. The point was enough to lift Cove off the bottom of League One.
Hartley said the club had been patient in building Maguire’s fitness before committing to a deal. “He has got great experience,” the Cove manager said. “He has been in training with us for a wee while. We have been trying to get him up to speed. He hasn’t played a lot of football.”
Maguire’s long senior career began at Aberdeen, where he scored 25 goals in 156 games before moving south. Over the next decade, he featured for Derby County, Sheffield Wednesday, Rotherham United and Oxford United, as well as a three-season spell at Sunderland. He joined the Black Cats in the summer of 2018, scoring a memorable hat-trick against Wimbledon in August 2019 and making 125 appearances before leaving the Stadium of Light in 2021.
Hartley believes that level of experience will serve Cove well, with Maguire also having turned out for the likes of Rotherham United, Derby County and Oxford United during his long career in the game. “He adds a bit of quality to the squad and experience to help the younger players,” he said. “We are trying to get him into the game bit by bit. We need to introduce him 20 minutes at a time.”
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Maguire went on to reunite with Michael Appleton at Lincoln City in 2021, scoring a hat-trick against Sunderland during his first season with the Imps, before eventually leaving the club amid an FA betting charge that was resolved prior to his move to Ayr United. He spent last season at Eastleigh, scoring regularly in the National League, but opted to move back to Scotland after leaving the Spitfires in the summer.
Hartley says the forward’s influence was already evident during his brief cameo against Alloa in the Scottish third-tier. “We brought him on for the last 15 against Alloa and you could see his quality,” he said. “He will be a good signing for us, we just need to get him up to speed a little bit more. It will be more minutes in the legs next week.”