Dumbarton manager Jim Duffy has revealed that some of his players had met each other for the first time just hours before kick-off in their 3-2 friendly win over Dundee United.

There was a total of 10 players all vying for a contract from Duffy with six starting the game and another four featuring off the bench.

A further five also made their first appearance for the club in the win, and despite the result not being too important, the gaffer was pleased with the exercise.

He said: “It was great to play against Dundee United. They’ve got a big squad and changed it around but it was a really good exercise for us and a couple of the new boys getting some goals is always good for them, no matter if it’s a friendly or not.

“Three of the boys just turned up today for the first time and two others only turned up on Thursday. Half the team had never met each other really.

“It was a good workout and as I said to the players in there, I’m looking at it individually just now rather than collectively.

“It’s impossible to look at it collectively because we can’t work on shape or organisation - we’re just working on individual fitness, sharpness, touch, technique, and that was pretty decent.

“It was a good experience for some of the boys and mistakes were made, errors were there to be seen and there’s a lot of work to do, but it was a good exercise.”

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And with so many new faces and trialists on show, Duffy was happy to remain in his seat for much of the game and allow the players to play their own game.

He added: “You’ve got to take a step back and look at the players and see where they are.

“I’m not just focusing on an area - if the ball is up the pitch I’m looking to see where the defenders are or the full-backs are or the opposite side of the pitch.”