Brechin City’s in-form midfielder Alan Trouten was over the moon after scoring his first-ever hat-trick in the 7-2 rout of Stenhousemuir and feels that he’s now back to full match fitness after being sidelined by injury since the beginning of the season.

“ I’ve scored a few doubles before but that’s the first time I’ve ever scored a hat-trick in senior football so I’m absolutely delighted, especially having missed the first few games of the season,” he said.

“ I played in a pre-season friendly against Queens Park and tore a muscle behind my knee which put me on the sidelines for a few weeks but I’ve now had a few games under my belt to get my fitness up to scratch and feel I’m now back to the level I should be at.”

“ The squad’s suffered more than a few injuries in recent weeks with a number of players being unavailable but we’re now getting back to strength and today’s and last week’s results are an indication of what we can achieve when we have a full squad at our disposal.”

“ There’s no doubt that the new manager has also had a big impact. The training has been very enjoyable and having played under a few good managers himself, he’s obviously aware of what it’s all about.”

“ He’s encouraged me to play in a wide right midfield position which I haven’t been accustomed to for a couple of years as I’m more familiar in playing a central midfield role but I have to say that I’m thoroughly enjoying it. I’m encouraged to get forward and attack the opposition whenever I’m in the final third of the park and it gives my confidence a huge boost to know that the manager has enough confidence in me to allow me to express myself in this way.”