Derek Riordan signs for Saints then reflects on "nasty" China stint Published on Saturday 31 March 2012 03:57 DEREK Riordan is desperate to put his nightmare stint in China behind him and make a fresh start at St Johnstone. The former Hibs and Celtic striker, who may be pitched straight into the St Johnstone squad against his former club at Parkhead tomorrow, yesterday signed a short-term deal through to the end of the season. And he admits his Far East adventure was one to forget. He signed a lucrative two-year deal with Shaanxi Chan-Ba in July last year but shipped out in November. Riordan revealed: "It was a nasty experience for me. I lost a stone in weight in three months. It's not like you can just go down to Asda to get food. The nearest European supermarket to where I stayed was a half-hour walk. Just buying the right food was really hard. I spent a lot of time with an Italian player, Fabio Firmani who used to play for Lazio, and I think we had tomato pasta just about every night. He's left as well. Four out of five who came across have done the same. Nobody spoke English and I didn't want to bring my girlfriend and child over. It was like an army camp, basically. The standard of football was really bad as well, and I had three managers in three months. They had two Serbian guys who lasted about a month each and then a Chinese guy who's still there I think. The last manager asked me where I wanted to play and I said up front or wide left and he put me on the right side of midfield, then took me off after 20 minutes. Then that was that. It was alright for the first few weeks and at least I tried it. It was certainly an experience. A lot of things just weren't right - we would have chicken fried rice for our pre-match meal. While I was over there the chairman of Shanghai got arrested for launching a bottle at one of the players from the stand. It was nuts. It was the food that was the hardest thing though. All the European guys found it very hard. It was really draining. I couldn't wait to get home for a decent meal I was down to just over 10 stone, but I've put the weight back on since I've come home and I'm now back to around 11 stone. A revitalised Riordan, 29, admits he leapt at the chance to kick-start his career with Europa League-chasing Saints and manager Steve Lomas. I've really enjoyed my time here so far. I'd been at Kilmarnock training but that wasn't as handy for me. The boys have been flying and I'll have to work hard to get into the team. I'm alright fitness-wise, I know that. It's just my game sharpness that might not be there - getting that extra yard of pace. But I've played bounce games with Kilmarnock, Blackpool and here. I'm really excited about getting going again with St Johnstone. The gaffer has given me chance and I want to do well for him. Reflecting on the bad-boy tag which has followed him throughout his career, he insisted: "I've been judged since I was young. People who really know me will tell you I'm a nice person. I've been tarnished as being trouble because of the nightclub thing in Edinburgh but that's a load or rubbish. I've never been charged with anything. It's ridiculous. I'm a normal person. I like to go out for a drink after a game like most other players, but that's all. I know a few of the boys [here] from playing against them. It's an experienced squad and it won't be easy getting into the team. As long as I do my business on the park, that's the main thing. I just want to concentrate on my football. It would be great to help Saints to Europe. The last time I did that was with Hibs. The boys have worked really hard to get into this position and hopefully the manager will give me the chance to help out and score some goals. I think I could come on for the last half hour or so against Celtic, if that's what he needs. I've told the manager I'm ready for the weekend if he wants to use me. It would be a great game to be involved in. Celtic will be desperate to get the win. However, Lomas has warned new signing Derek Riordan he will have to fight for his place in the team. Lomas said: "We know what we're getting and it suits both parties as it gets Derek playing again. He knows what the SPL is all about so we will take it from there. He will have to fight his way into our team and that won't be easy. Riordan could make his Saints debut tomorrow, but Lomas stressed: "I haven't made a decision yet so we will wait and see. Derek is obviously saying that he's up for selection. We just wanted to get it sorted so we are delighted he has signed. He's going to bring quality, he's got that in abundance. We are looking forward to working with him, he's a talented boy. We've just got to get him fit and playing games.