McLeish appointed permanent St Mirren boss

The 36-year-old took interim charge following Stephen Robinson's move to Aberdeen in March; he won three of his nine Premiership games in charge; the Buddies beat Partick Thistle in the play-off final to avoid relegation

>St Mirren have appointed Craig McLeish as permanent boss after he led them to Scottish Premiership survival.

>The 36-year-old was placed in interim charge in March when his predecessor, Stephen Robinson, left the club to take over at Aberdeen.

>McLeish, who has signed a deal until the summer of 2029, won three of his nine league matches but was unable to prevent the Buddies finishing second bottom.

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>They beat Partick Thistle in the play-off final, however, to secure their place in the top flight for another season.

>His first competitive games of the new season will be against Dumbarton, Cove Rangers, East Kilbride and Dunfermline in the group stage of the Scottish League Cup.

>Stuart Taylor will remain as assistant manager, while head of goalkeeping Jamie Langfield will also take on the added role of set-piece coach.

>On his appointment, Craig said: "I want to thank the board for giving me this opportunity and I'm ready to grasp it. I'm delighted that my vision aligned with the club's, and they feel I'm the best person to take us forward.

>"It feels like maybe the end of a cycle with where we were at. We've achieved a lot over this last period, and we have to now look at what we do and how we operate as a club. A lot of that will be about developing our own young players and giving them more opportunities. I think with my knowledge of the players coming through and how much I trust them, I don't think there would be a better person to go down that route as well.

>"I've been at this club now for eight years and they're [the fans] such a massive part of what we do and we have to continue feeding off them. We have to put a product on the pitch that they can be proud of and that's a big part of me looking forward to this the support we get from them and developing good relationships with the fans."

>St Mirren Chief Operating Officer Keith Lasley added: "It was always the plan to get to the end of the season, have a short period of reflection on what had taken place in that period and also conclude the thorough process that was already running in the background. That's what we've taken the time to do.

>"Ultimately, we feel as a football club, that Craig very much aligns with the club's real ambition and needs moving forward.

>"I think this is a moment for the club that was always coming probably to the end of a cycle, a very successful one, but we feel as if there's a new exciting challenge ahead in the way we win as a football club. That is the development of young players, the development of a player trading model and the development of a style and an exciting football team for our fans to come here every weekend and watch.

>"We wanted the data and the personal characteristics to reflect those key points for us moving forward and those things joined together was really part of the process for us finding the candidate that we felt was best in that role.

>"We know where Craig is in his journey, he's still very early, but I think there's some really good examples, at the likes of Brentford and Brighton, that give people opportunity. We want to be that club and that's based on merit. Craig is a very driven, hungry individual."

>Already thinking about the 2026/27 Scottish Premiership season?

>There's a World Cup to fit in first - follow live blogs of every game on the Sky Sports App - but the key dates are locked in for next term, when Sky Sports will once again show you the best of the action.

>Here's your summer diary: June 11: World Cup starts - day-by-day fixture list June 14: Scotland's opener vs Haiti (2am) June 15: Summer transfer window opens June 18: Scottish Premiership fixtures released (noon) July 19: World Cup final August 1-2: Scottish Premiership opening weekend September 1: Transfer Deadline Day (window closes at 11pm UK time) April 10-11, 2027: Final pre-split Scottish Premiership fixtures May 15-16, 2027: Scottish Premiership final day

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