Ethan Laidlaw ready to make Falkirk impact after time with Brentford and Hibs.
Ethan Laidlaw believes that his decision to move to Brentford from Hibs has paid off – and that he is ready to make an impact in the Scottish Premiership with Falkirk.
The 21-year-old forward, who signed a permanent two-year deal with an option of a third last month, made his competitive Bairns debut against Edinburgh City, grabbing an assist during the 5-0 rout.
He also came off the bench during Falkirk’s frustrating 1-0 defeat to Ayr United on Tuesday night in the Premier Sports Cup.
Playing senior football in Scotland is a different kettle of fish to the development Premier League 2 – and Laidlaw has quickly grasped that.
Ethan Laidlaw loved Brentford spell
"My time at Brentford was really good. It was educational for myself,” he said.
"I felt quite comfortable at Hibs. I think to go out of my comfort zone and go to a new place and the environment was brilliant. I worked with a lot of good people, a lot of good coaches.
"I just felt the time had come to test myself in Scotland and I think I'm more than good enough to play at this level.
“Down there, it is so different to up here. The money is on a different scale. You're competing against 18-year-olds getting bought for £10 million.
"It's tough. I think I did really well. When you feel like have done all you can do, then it's out of your hands. That's what I felt like.
"I think staying at Brentford for another year wouldn't have benefited me in any way. I could have just stalled.
"Whereas I think coming here under the manager, in this environment, I think it's only going to help me.
"Again, it might not be as easy as it was last year. I might not score 10, 15, 20 goals, but I'll learn and I'll get better every game.”
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Laidlaw added: “I think I'm trying to just find my feet just now. I'm a player that wants to score goals and get assists.
"Obviously against Edinburgh, getting an assist was great for me. It was disappointing not to start against Ayr. But my only focus after that was trying to make an impact when I came on.
"I am still adapting, but you can't take too long because you've got to get going with the competitive games starting early. You've got to hit the ground running.”
On Falkirk’s 1-0 loss to Ayr, the forward didn’t pull any punches about the subpar showing.
“We started really slow, which didn't help,” he admitted. “I just don't think we really coped with the fact that they had something to hold on to. I think our quality went a wee bit out the window.
"We got a bit desperate for a goal. I think that showed. I think overall as a team, I just don't think we were at the levels that we should be at.
"There's no margin for error now in the group. We have to go out and win our next two games."
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