MacDonald keen to repay Locke
Jamie MacDonald aims to repay Gary Locke for his faith by helping the Kilmarnock manager succeed with the first team he has been able to mould himself.
Locke took over at Hearts after the winter transfer window ended in 2013 and was soon restricted by a transfer embargo when the club went into administration.
After losing his job just as Hearts were set to come out of administration, he took over at Kilmarnock in February days after the transfer window ended.
This is the fourth season he has been in charge of a club but the first time he will be able to call a team his own, and he quickly brought in MacDonald in June.
MacDonald, who could make his debut in the Ladbrokes Premiership opener against Dundee at Rugby Park, said: "I enjoyed working under the gaffer last time at Hearts and I'm looking forward to doing that again.
"The situations he has been put in before, he has had his hands tied.
"This is his first season where he has been able to bring his own players in and do his own things from the start of a season.
"It's half the battle if you have a manager you want to play for. It's the case for a lot of the boys here, he has put a lot of faith in us, and we want to have a good season for him especially.
"When I spoke to him he had a desire to bring me here and it's good to be wanted."
Dundee manager Paul Hartley maintains he has no concerns about his side coping with added expectation in the new season.
Hopes are high that the Dark Blues can eclipse last season's top-six finish.
Hartley has brought in no fewer than eight new players over the course of the summer to swell the feel-good factor and is confident they can take the increased pressure in their stride.
"That's just the way football is. The expectation of the club now is a little bit higher because of the way we finished last season," Hartley said.
"But it's better being like that even though it comes with some pressure. We have to be ready for that pressure and we will be.
"We've got a good group who want to do well and we will put pressure on ourselves every week. We want to do well in every competition we enter.
"I think from talking to people they feel the club is going to do well this season.
"We finished in the top-six last season and this season we want to finish higher. So we have to try and improve on what we did, not just in the league but in the cup as well."
Source: PAR
