DOUGIE Freedman is delighted with his loan boys Jay Spearing and Craig Dawson but wants to build his squad for keeps.

The central pair were right at the heart of Saturday’s gritty 1-0 win over Brighton but the Whites boss remains firm in his view that both will be returning to their parent clubs at the end of the campaign.

Dawson remains undefeated in eight games since his arrival from West Brom, while Spearing – brought in by Owen Coyle from Liverpool – has proved arguably the Whites’ most consistent performer over the course of the campaign.

Freedman credits both with a leading role in the current unbeaten run, but, looking to the future, he does not want to place too much emphasis on loaning players from other clubs.

“I’ve had it before as a manager and you want to make sure that when you bring in a player, you buy them,” he said. “You can’t have too many loans.

“I strongly believe in my development programme. I worked very hard at my previous club to put in place a programme that develops players. We work hard on the training ground, as you know.

“I strongly believe that I can make players better. I’m not in the habit of doing that and giving them back, so hopefully we can buy them.”

Freedman has had to be thrifty in the transfer market since his arrival in October and has also raided the loan market for short-term solutions, such as Jacob Butterfield from Norwich or Steve de Ridder from Southampton.

The Scot makes no secret of the fact he intends to bring another couple of “quick fixes” to aid his tiring front line before the window closes at the end of the month.

But after Spearing’s man of the match display against Brighton, the Wanderers boss reiterated that a deal to sign the midfielder on a permanent basis is not currently on the cards.

“I’ve got a football club to look after here and that’s all I am worried about at the moment,” he said.

“Jay is a part of that, and so is Craig (Dawson). The deal is that we work him and give him back to Liverpool.

“All I’m really interested in when they go back to the parent clubs is getting a ‘well done, thanks very much’.”

Spearing’s performance did prompt praise from the manager, however, with Freedman delighted by the attitude shown by the 24-year-old ball-winner.

“When I first came here I don’t think I played him for the first couple of games and he told me he desperately wanted to get back in,” he said. “I knew from the way he was talking to me that he was serious.

“I thought once he got to know how I work and how I play that it would work because he is very coachable. As you’ve seen now he’s great. He’s growing up as a young guy.

“It’s the first time he’s come out and played 20-odd games, so he’s growing in confidence and he’s buying into what we’re trying to do. He’s a pleasure to work with.”