cinch Championship Player of the Month announced for December

He has since been recalled to League One Falkirk, as they attempt to get out of League One and back into the Championship.

He bagged a hat-trick last week in the Bairns’ 6-2 win over Dumbarton.

And Dowds is looking continue his rich goalscoring form. 

He said: “I found myself a bit out of the picture at Falkirk and the manager at the time was happy for me to go and seek out a loan.

“I’d played with a few people who had played under Dick Campbell before and it was a case of when my agent went to speak to clubs, he was happy to talk with me.

“We had a chat about what he expects from the team and from players who play for him and it kicked on from there.

“When I came in, I was bit short of confidence but they came in straight away. I knew the standard and Arbroath it wasn’t going to be easy getting in the team but it was an unbelievable opportunity for me to go up a league and test myself at that level.

“It was the first time I’d played in in the Championship – it’s something I’d always wanted to do. So to get that opportunity and get that belief and confidence from the management team and work on my fitness, it all started to come together. I feel I’ve definitely progressed.

“I think the highlight for me was the win at Kilmarnock in November. The team was playing well at the time but we knew it was a test going down to Kilmarnock who were favourites for the league.

“We really went about it in a fantastic manner. We asserted ourselves on the game and showed our confidence, what we’re about. I started on the bench that day but I could see by the way the team was playing that we’d get something out of it.

“I was over the moon that I managed to get the winning goal just before the end which did reflect the performance.

“December was a fantastic month for us and I think that’s reflected on how we got on against the teams around us in the league and that kicked us on to the top of the league.”