Falkirk are ready to cash in on prize assets Lee Miller, Collin Samuel and
Mark Kerr after an army of scouts from English Premiership clubs has been camped
at Brockville all season.
Champions Arsenal are one of the interested clubs, Falkirk general manager
Crawford Baptie confirmed on Thursday.
The Gunners are thought to be particularly interested in Miller, the
19-year-old who has netted 20 times in just 51 games for the Bairns, including
12 this season.
He and Samuel, the lightning-quick striker from Trinidad, have already been on
trial at Everton and Kerr, the Scotland Under-21 international, has had trials
at Leeds, Celtic and Ipswich.
The trio are among the hottest properties in Scottish football and First
Division leaders Falkirk have made it clear they will allow the players to move
on should the right offer come along.
Baptie said: "I could tell you 20 English Premiership
clubs have watched Lee Miller.
"I look at all the faxes that come in and I have seen Arsenal's. The amount
of Premiership clubs who come here is incredible.
"It is like a Who's Who in the stand. We have to put 20 to 30 seats aside for
them. Last season it would be only five or six.
"There have been scouts from English First Division clubs as well, plus
Scottish Premier League.
"Celtic's scout was here on Tuesday night as well.
"But we have only received one offer and that was for Collin Samuel. It was
from a Scottish Premier League club during the transfer window and it was
rejected.
"If we could sell them on then it would be to the highest bidder. The players
know that if someone does come in with the right money then we would not stand
in their way."
Miller was on target in the 3-0 win over Clyde on Tuesday and the scouts saw
midfielder Kerr complete the match and Samuel withdrawn on the hour.
Miller and Samuel spent a week with Everton just days after their sensational
performances in a 4-0 Scottish Cup thrashing of Hearts in January, in which
Samuel notched a first half hat-trick.
Both players are believed to be rated in the £500,000 bracket, with Kerr not
quite as expensive.
Baptie said: "They went down to Everton for a week's trial and David Moyes
said they had acquitted themselves well and that they would keep tabs on
them."
Toffees boss Moyes had used his friendship with ex-Dunfermline team-mate Ian
McCall to set up the trial and Falkirk were to have been able to borrow a couple
of promising Goodison youngsters in return.
But McCall's controversial decamping to Dundee United put an end to that and
the Falkirk are still in compensation negotiations with the Tannadice club over
the poaching of their boss.
The Bairns are still on course to take the First Division title despite the
setback of losing McCall but know promotion is unlikely.
Crumbling Brockville does not meet SPL safety requirements, which stipulate
10,000 seats must be in place.
Work on a brand new ground on the outskirts of the town is about to begin but
cannot be completed in time for the new season.
Falkirk are hoping to be allowed into the SPL via a temporary ground-sharing
agreement with Airdrie United but this remains a long shot.
Baptie said: "We are in discussions about ground-sharing and we will have to
put a submission to the SPL before March 20."