The two had pledged their futures to the Dark Blues back in January and, although attempts to secure their services for the second half of the season did not come off, boss Alex Rae is sure the wait to get them will be worth it.

“I’m getting two players who have good experience of this division and who have been consistently good performers against us and the other top teams in our league,” he said.

“Big McKeown is an old-fashioned centre-half. He’s hard and uncompromising, but he can play a bit as well and I am glad to have him on board.

“In Paton, we are getting vast experience of this league and a guy who has impressed me each time I’ve seen him. I started trying to sign him a year ago, so it has taken a bit of time to get him and I’m glad we have.”

Some doubt over McKeown’s switch from Broadwood had arisen when he needed an operation at the end of the season for a hernia problem that has dogged him for the past couple of years.

The surgery, however, went well and he will be fit to board the plane to Malta on June 25 for his new club’s pre-season training camp. And McKeown pledged he would be fit and ready to do battle for his new club from the first day of pre-season.

“It’s been a few months since I’ve played, but the op went well and I’m fine now,” he said. “If I could, I’d get started right away, but waiting until we are all together in Malta in a few weeks is not a bad option.”

Fellow-new signing Paton set his sights on travelling all the way to the SPL with his new club.

“When you look around this place, you see it’s a club that should be up there and it’s going to be up to us as players to make sure we get there.”

Both new men have penned initial one-year deals with the Dark Blues. Meanwhile, work on other new arrivals is continuing.