Friendly competition between Ross County goalkeepers will spur loanee Ashley Maynard-Brewer on
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Ashley Maynard-Brewer knows the gloves are off in the battle for Ross County’s number one jersey – but insists it will be the friendliest of fights.
The on-loan Charlton Athletic goalkeeper grasped his first-team chance on Saturday as the Dingwall team drew 2-2 with Hearts at the Global Energy Stadium.
Established choice Ross Laidlaw lost his place for the first time this season, but the 29-year-old – the most experienced of three County keepers – reacted superbly, according to Maynard-Brewer.
The latter, who represented his native Australia at under-23 level in this summer’s Tokyo Olympics, earned the sponsor’s man of the match award for his performance after several strong saves.
Now hoping to start on Saturday at Motherwell, Maynard-Brewer – born and raised in Joondalup, north of Perth in Western Australia – has come north seeking valuable first-team experience after previous loans in England’s minor leagues.
“The way Ross reacted to not playing on Saturday was outstanding – he’s a really good bloke and team-mate,” he said.
“With Ross, our goalie coach Scott Thomson and Ross Munro we have a really good group. We’re very open and honest, and we discuss many things on the training pitch.
“Going forward, I’m looking forward to competing with Ross, but we are both very supportive of one another. We talk a lot about various situations in games and review matches thoroughly. I think that’s really important going forward.”
That attention to detail, Maynard-Brewer feels, has kept spirits high throughout the
squad during the winless run.
“We know we’ve done some really good things in the past few games,” he added.
“We know the first win will come if we keep doing the right things.”
