Mark Ridgers is determined to win a long-term deal at Partick Thistle after they gave him the opportunity to kick-start his career back home in Scotland.

The former St Mirren goalkeeper was most recently at US side Orlando City B, but he admits that the dream Florida lifestyle was off-set by personal sacrifices as he spent a long time travelling and away from his new wife.

Now that he is back home, he hopes that a more settled life away from the park can help him to show his best on it, as he looks to push Thistle number one Tomas Cerny for a starting place.

“When the move to America came about I didn’t have that many options and I wanted to continue playing,” Ridgers said. “Luckily my agent had contacts out there and they gave me the opportunity.

“I ended up playing about 30 games which was good to get under my belt at a competitive level, but being married in May last year it was difficult from my wife’s point of view.

“She came over but she found it hard to adapt because I was always away. I’d be away for three days or sometimes even weeks, and even our home games were an hour and a half from where we stayed.

“We were playing down in Melbourne in the east of Florida, so there was a lot of travelling and she was left in the house alone not really knowing anybody.

“You wanted to be around your family, so although it was a great opportunity and a great move for me, it just came at the wrong time.”

The move to Firhill also ends a period of uncertainty for Ridgers, who was certain that he wanted to return to these shoes, only to find that offers were hardly in plentiful supply.

The whole experience has served to strengthen his resolve that his stay in Maryhill won’t be a brief one.

“This is the first experience I’ve had where I was out of contract for a period of time and I wasn’t really sure what was going on,” he said.

“It obviously plays on your mind, and I had offers from part-time clubs in Scotland and after a while you start to consider that and feel like you have to get a full-time job.

“It’s well-publicised that there isn’t a lot of money in the Scottish game at the moment, especially compared to England, so realistically for a player of my age who wants to progress in my life and have a family, financially you have to look after yourself as well.

“Possibly in Scotland the part-time route with a full-time job could’ve been the way forward, so that is why I am really fortunate to be given this opportunity by the manager to come back full-time again at a good level.

“That period of uncertainty that I had wasn’t nice. You start to question everything and pressure starts to mount. You have to think about the future, your bills and if you can’t pay them then you have to find a way to do that.

“Having experienced that at a young age is a bit of an eye-opener and I don’t want to be in that situation again.”

Thistle’s players are currently enjoying a training camp in La Manga as they tune up during the winter break, and Ridgers says it is the perfect way to get to know his new teammates.

“I think the trip is ideal when you consider that when you normally come into a club you’re training for a couple of hours and then you’re away home again,” he said.

“Getting away with the boys for a good period of time like this allows me to get to know them and see the characters in the squad. I’ve heard good things about them all, so hopefully they’ll all live up the expectations set by players that I know who have played here.”