JIM Duffy says he’ll continue to ease Jai Quitongo back into action in the early parts of the campaign after the striker returned to action following a long-term knee injury.

Quitongo had been out since last December with an injury sustained against Dunfermline Athletic at East End Park. 
And Duffy doesn’t want to rush him at the risk of any possible recurring issues.

The 19-year-old started for Ton against Berwick on Saturday when new boy Robert Thomson missed out due to a minor medical procedure on Friday, but Duffy reckons it’s important to keep Quitongo protected before the beginning of the league campaign.

He told the Tele: “Having Jai back is a big boost for us because he missed three quarters of last season, so having key players in an area where we were a little bit shallow last season is helpful.

“We’ll continue to ease Jai back in. In an ideal world he’d have had two or three reserve matches before you bring a player back from a long-term injury, but we didn’t have that luxury. 

“So we’ll continue to ease him in a bit at a time until he’s ready. We have a duty of care to protect the player and he’s a terrific talent.

“We don’t want to rush him if we don’t believe he’s 
ready. 

“Obviously physically he’s very strong, mentally he wants to go and show his quality, so it’s just a case now of accelerating the process. 

“He’s back competing now which is the most important thing and I’m sure he’ll be very close to top level within a very short period of time.”