Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Smith delighted to be a part of Buddies’ title win
CAMMY Smith’s decision to join St Mirren was vindicated after the Paisley side clinched the Ladbrokes Championship title with a 0-0 draw against Livingston on Saturday.
The 22-year-old attacker signed for the Buddies last summer after a loan spell at the club from Aberdeen, in which he had to help take them away from the wrong end of the table.
Ex-Dundee United man Smith was delighted to have completed the transformation under boss Jack Ross, saying: “When I came here on loan, I remember the day the gaffer phoned me.
“I was in the Aberdeen players’ lounge. I won’t lie, I was looking at the table, St Mirren were bottom.
“But he sold it to me right away with how good he came across and I haven’t looked back. He has put his faith in me and I have loved it.
“To be on the brink of going down, to come to winning the league with three games to go is unbelievable and we deserved it.”
Captain Stephen McGinn, who returned for a second spell at the club in January 2017, said: “When I came back to the club I wanted to achieve safety and then go on and take the club back to the Premiership and to have done it in 18 months is beyond my wildest dreams.
“It has been such a special 18 months, we have all pulled in one direction, it was amazing. I can’t describe the feeling.”
Goalkeeper Craig Samson said: “I’m ecstatic. Things like this don’t happen all the time.
“I am obviously in the latter stages of my career. I hope some of the boys go on to win loads of things but the feeling of winning it with this football club is unbelievable for me. Everyone here deserves it.”