Hello and welcome to your bespoke St Mirren newsletter by David Irvine as Stephen Robinson signs new contract...
The telling factor in Stephen Robinson's St Mirren contract decision ✍️
I've long believed Stephen Robinson will remain at St Mirren for the long-term.
Even before the official announcement of his contract extension to 2027, there was little doubt in my mind he would remain in place at the SMiSA Stadium but for any offer too good to turn down.
So far, Robinson and St Mirren have been a perfect match. Ambition levels have risen, achievements have soared and stability has been found.
I was, therefore, not surprised when he stated his thought process on management at St Mirren which featured long-term planning rather than the all-too-familiar rapid fixes adopted in modern football.
There has been no duct tape and superglue approach to broken models, instead, there has been thoughtful and genuine consideration in how best to position the club for the years to come - and a time when Robinson is not at the helm.
“I’m only here for a short period of time in the grand scheme of things," he said. "But you have to make sure you leave the football club in a really good place for the people that matter most and that’s the fans.
“I think you’ve got to manage the football club like you’re going to be here for 20 years. Obviously that doesn’t happen in modern day football, but you have to manage it like that.
“So the decisions I make aren’t short term. They aren’t quick fixes, the same as the board’s decisions.
“There’s a longer-term approach to the football club. And when you leave this football club, you try and put things in place that will make it successful for years to come.”
Just consider the progress being made, better, more sustainable efforts being made off the pitch are not the exciting or whirlwind efforts of a manager planning to make his own success and then disappear to line his pockets elsewhere.
Robinson is fully aware that investment in the training ground - including a six-figure resurfacing of the pitch - would not bring about instant improvement.
Equally, the strategic building of relationships, including with the JD Academy in Northern Ireland, is not with instant reward in mind.
Robinson has been a major force for good at St Mirren and has catapulted the club forward both with his shrewd management and his buy-in to the culture and plans for the future.
Equally, St Mirren have been ideal suitors for the Northern Irishman with opportunity to succeed and genuine backing throughout his tenure.
He has been rewarded handsomely in his new deal but that is not without merit.
While easy to say when results are going well, perhaps this new deal is a timely reminded of the strategy at St Mirren. It's about the long-term, or medium-term as Robinson has stated previously, not just going week-by-week.
Sure, last weekend was a disaster and a low point in Robinson's spell at St Mirren so far but over the course? Well, it's been a steep upward trajectory.
AND ANOTHER THING
I was thrilled to watch Stephen McGinn's St Mirren under-18 side run out 8-0 winners over Caledonian Braves on Monday.
In front of a decent crowd in the Main Stand, of a few hundred, the young Buddies were dominant in the Scottish Youth Cup tie.
Evan Mooney clearly caught the limelight after his debut and looked sharp and a cut above at the youth level. Callum Penman and Struan Thompson also looked promising and well-deserving of their inclusion in and around the first-team in bursts this season.
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