Paul’s raring to go McGinn can’t wait for game

Paul McGinn admits any fears over his move to St Mirren were quickly dispelled following the appointment of Alan Stubbs.

The new Saints’ defender was left in limbo having penned a precontract with the Buddies after being sold on the deal by the club’s former gaffer, Jack Ross.

That led to the ex-Partick Thistle man being unveiled as a new signing while the club was without a manager following Ross’s move to Sunderland.

McGinn laughed that it was something of a “different situation”, but with his younger brother John having previously worked under Stubbs at Hibernian, the 27-yearold revealed he was delighted with the new boss’ arrival.

He said: “It was a pretty strange situation, I must admit, but it has been good so far. John had told me a lot about him so I knew what I was going into.

“A lot of the Hibs boys raved about him so I was pleased to see that he was the manager who got the job.”

McGinn returned home yesterday following the squad’s pre-season trip to La Manga, with Saturday’s friendly with Bolton Wanderers ready in his sights.

And he admits he can’t wait to get some game time under his belt following three weeks of training.

He added: “We will hopefully steal a march on Bolton on Saturday because they will have just been back this week while we have been in a few weeks now.

“Hopefully, we will be able to outrun them and whatever else, but it will just be good to be back out there on the pitch.

“I can’t wait for the game to be honest. Pre-season isn’t where you want to be.

“We don’t have long with the League Cup starting soon and we have to shake the rust off because we want to hit the ground running.

“We would rather be playing competitive games instead of meaningless friendlies so the League Cup is off benefit.”

But with La Manga fresh in the memory, the defender revealed that it was no saunter in the sun, with Stubbs putting the side through their paces throughout.

“It’s tough but really enjoyable as well”, McGinn explained.

“All the boys have got to know each other quite well – but it would be wrong to say that it hasn’t been hard.

“It definitely allowed me to get to know the boys well. I obviously know a few of the boys having played with a few of them, or through my other brother Stephen, but in terms of getting to know them properly, it has made a big difference.”