Celtic pair move to Swindon Town
Swindon Town Football Club have secured the signings of Simon Ferry and Paul Caddis from Celtic Football Club. Both players have signed three-year deals with the English Football League One side.
The lower-league club had previously bid around £250,000 for the duo, but last season’s Scottish Premier League runners-up had knocked back the offer. Swindon later came back with an improved bid of £350,000 for the players and that was enough for Celtic to allow the pair to hold talks with the English outfit.
Ferry had worked his way up through the ranks at Celtic after joining their youth academy and signed his first professional contract with the club in January 2006. He impressed as he helped the Under-19 squad win both the league and cup double in 2006, and went on to make his first-team debut during a pre-season tour of Poland that summer. However, his chances of seeing more first-team action were wrecked as injury problems took their toll and ruled him out of playing for the club for three years. The Dundee-born midfielder made a return to the first-team squad in 2009 and featured in a pre-season 2-0 friendly win over English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur in July 2009.
Shipped out on loan
In August 2009, the 22-year-old Ferry was shipped out on loan to Swindon for six months. He made his debut against Southend United in a 2-1 win and was named the game’s Man of the Match. In November, a deal was reached with Celtic to extend the loan deal to the end of the season. In the 2009-10 season, Ferry played 42 games for the club and scored twice, impressing Swindon's management team enough to win himself a permanent deal. He has also received international recognition, having reached the final of the 2006 UEFA Under-19 European Championship with Scotland, but his team lost to a Spanish side which featured 2010 FIFA World Cup winner Gerard Pique. Ferry did not feature for Celtic in competitive action before leaving for Swindon.
Caddis, also 22, joined Celtic’s youth set-up in 2004. He initially played with the Under-17 squad before moving to the Under-19 side and becoming team captain. He made his senior debut against EPL side Newcastle United in a friendly in 2007. He then made his debut in a competitive match for Celtic in January 2008, after coming on as a substitute in a 1-0 win over Falkirk Football Club. He has also featured for the club in Europe as he took part in Celtic’s 3-3 draw against Rapid Vienna in the UEFA Europa League in December 2009.
Versatile youngster
In January 2009, Caddis was sent out on loan to SPL outfit Dundee United Football Club. He played 11 times for the Tangerines, but failed to score. His versatility means he can play either as a right-back or as a right winger, providing Swindon manager Danny Wilson with several options with which to utilise the player.
With Swindon, the duo have joined a club that has aspirations of being promoted to the Football League Championship this season. Although they had flirted with the automatic promotion places last season, a dip in form saw Swindon finish fifth as they reached the League One play-offs. After they saw off Charlton Athletic Football Club in a semi-final penalty shootout – a tie which saw Ferry score an own goal - they went to face Millwall at Wembley Stadium in London for a chance to be promoted to the Championship. However they lost the match 1-0, their first defeat in four appearances at the English national stadium.
Ferry and Caddis are both set to play a part in Swindon’s League One opening game against Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.
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