McGINN PUTS JOY BEFORE A WINDFALL
FOR St Mirren captain Stephen McGinn, it is the million-pound question. Should Hibs sell his £5million-rated younger brother John this summer, the Paisley side would be due a third of the windfall. That £1.67m would make a huge difference to new boss Alan Stubbs’ recruitment for the club’s first season in the top flight in three years. But McGinn insists no price can be put on the happiness of his little brother. ‘It’s funny, I don’t think I’ve ever had a conversation with our chairman (Gordon Scott) without him asking about John’s sell-on clause,’ smiled McGinn, speaking after St Mirren clinched a six-figure, four-year deal to rename their stadium as The Simple Digital Arena. ‘With everything else, I put St Mirren first but with this one, I have to put John first.
‘He’s really happy where he is. John and Hibs have been so good together he’s now an established Scotland player. ‘I thought Scott Brown and John were the two best midfielders in the country last season. So he’s in a good place and he’s ready to go next season with Hibs.’ McGinn’s other brother, Paul, recently rejoined St Mirren from relegated Partick Thistle, so there could be three siblings doing battle when Saints face Hibs. It will be a test of loyalties for their parents. While dad Stephen Snr will be at St Mirren v Hibs matches, mum Mary will stay away from watching a Stephen v John midfield battle. ‘She knows what John and I are like,’ said Stephen. ‘One of us could be on the end of a bad tackle, so she doesn’t like watching us play each other. She just wouldn’t go. ‘My dad would probably support Hibs.’ McGinn is looking forward to catching up next season with former Shrewsbury team-mate Connor Goldson after the defender’s £3m move to Rangers from Brighton was confirmed yesterday. Goldson fought back from open heart surgery while at Brighton to play in the English Premier League. ‘At one point, it looked like he would not play football again, so full credit to him for coming back from that,’ said McGinn. ‘This is a potential life-changing move to Rangers.’
ALAN STUBBS has made former Celtic team-mate Darren Jackson his first-team coach at St Mirren, saying: ‘He’ll be great with the players and is someone I can trust.’