St Mirren Football Club is delighted to confirm Ryan Flynn has triggered an extension clause in his contract and will remain at the club for the 2023/24 season. 

The midfielder - affectionately termed Flynniesta - is our longest serving first-team player having joined the club in January 2018 when we were on our way to winning promotion to the Premiership.

Ryan has since gone on to make 139 appearances for Saints – with 23 of those coming this season – and has taken his first steps into coaching after undertaking his UEFA B Licence. 

The 34-year-old joins the likes of Greg Kiltie, Marcus Fraser, Mark O'Hara, Trevor Carson and Richard Taylor in extending their contracts in recent months. 

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson said: "I think Ryan brings vast experience and quality to the club.

He’s shown he can still go into the team and do well in numerous positions. As a squad player, he’s fantastic, and as an experienced professional, he’s exactly what we need at the football club.

"He’ll get involved in a little bit of the coaching in the first-team as well and I want him to be a part of what we are doing. 

"It's vital to have experienced players," the manager continued. "They dictate the tempo of training, the gym work and the attitude around the place.

"The older boys in the squad are the ones who do a bit for me in terms of helping manage the players and it’s important he stayed given his quality and what he offers on the pitch as well." 

Digby Brown Solicitors is set to continue its principal sponsorship of St Mirren Football Club for the third year in a row.

The announcement extends the original plan for a two-year deal with the Paisley team.

The personal injury firm said it was delighted to commit to another year with Saints after being impressed with not only the team's performance in achieving top six but also the club’s commitment to community, inclusivity, and equality.

Today’s announcement continues their commitment to the historic kit deal which saw the Women's team and boy's academy wearing the same strip as the Men’s first-team – believed to be a first in top flight Scottish football history.

Keith Lasley, Chief Operating Officer at St Mirren FC, said: "We’re delighted that Digby Brown are extending their partnership with the club.

Both Digby Brown and St Mirren share many values in terms of the promotion of our people within our businesses and the focus on our people’s development.

"We hope we can both help each other grow and continue what has been a successful relationship so far."

Fraser Oliver, Chief Executive at Digby Brown, said: "When we first agreed to sponsor St Mirren, we were still partly in lockdown and looking to find new ways of marketing the Digby Brown brand.

It was completely new territory for us but here we are at the end of two seasons - we don’t feel ready to walk away yet.

"The whole team at St Mirren have been brilliant in this second season, not just the players but everyone in the business – we have done great things together.

"At Digby Brown we take pride in knowing we are one team, and the passion of fans and the surrounding community is something that really resonates with everyone here at the firm.

"We still feel like there is more to achieve together and we look forward to another successful season as principal sponsors with St Mirren."

We entered our first year of sponsorship with Digby Brown in 2021, with the firm’s logo featuring on all home and away jerseys.

The 2022/23 season saw massive demand for the black Paisley-patterned away top which had eager Buddies queuing around The SMiSA Stadium. The strip was also a favourite of hit-maker DJ Ewan McVicar who was involved in its launch and proudly wore the new jersey every night at his summer Ibiza gigs.

Last year the bond between Digby Brown and the Saints was on display as First Men’s Team - Alex Greive, Scott Tanser and Greg Kiltie – attended the firm’s annual Spinal Injuries Scotland BBQ and Activities Day.

The players were able to engage and experience first-hand how the firm supports the spinal cord injury community through adaptive sports.

The firm also hosted a bumper giveaway of three highly sought after away shirts which were presented to the winning Buddies at The SMiSA Stadium in December 2022.

St Mirren return to cinch Premiership action this weekend as we head into the final five matches of the season.

Saints achieved a first top six finish in the current format after picking up 44 points from the first 33 matches and ensured a highest top-flight finish since 1985. Now focus is on the race for a European spot as the Buddies travel to Easter Road on Saturday sitting level on points with opponents Hibernian.

Hibernian sit in fifth place by virtue of goal difference and a fifth place finish could be enough for a European spot this season if Celtic are to beat Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish Cup Final. 

Both sides will also be aiming to close the gap on fourth place Hearts who are four points ahead. 

Match Details

Hibernian v St Mirren
Competition: cinch Premiership
Date: Saturday 6th May 2023
Kick-off: 3pm
Venue: Easter Road

Ticket Info

Tickets for Saturday's match are available at the St Mirren Ticket Office. Full ticket info is available HERE.

International subscribers to St Mirren TV can watch the match live on tv.stmirren.com as part of their subscription. There will be no PPV available. 

Previous

In three meetings between the sides this season, St Mirren have won one and lost two. 

Keanu Baccus scored the only goal when Saints defeated Hibernian 1-0 on a sunny August afternoon at The SMiSA Stadium.

The Hibees were 3-0 winners when the Buddies visited Easter Road back in October. And Lee Johnson's men took the bragging rights again when the sides faced at The SMiSA Stadium in February with Elie Youan netting a late winner in the last meeting of the two. 

Saturday's match comes six years to the day of our famous 1-1 draw with Hibernian at Easter Road with Rory Loy's goal seeing us complete our great escape and ensure our Championship status in 2017.

Rory Loy celebrates with Kyle Magennis, Stephen McGinn and Cammy Smith after scoring the goal that secured our Championship status (Image: Allan Picken)

The officials

The referee on Saturday is Matthew McDermid and he'll be assisted by Calum Spence and Stuart Stevenson. Chris Fordyce is the Fourth Official.

The Virtual Assistant Referee (VAR) is Euan Anderson with Daniel McFarlane the Assistant VAR. 

St Mirren Football Club can confirm it has exercised an option to extend Richard Taylor’s contract for a further two years - keeping him at the club until summer 2025. 

Richard joined initially on a six-month deal in January with the club holding the option to extend further which has now been taken up. 

A left-sided defender, Richard signed for Saints following the expiry of his contract at League of Ireland Division One side Waterford and made his debut in a 1-1 draw with Hearts at the beginning of January. The 22-year-old then impressed in his first start at Tynecastle against the Jambos less than a week later. 

Richard has gone on to make eight appearances for the first-team so far this season and is now committed to the club for the next two seasons. 

Manager Stephen Robinson told stmirren.com: "Richard has come in and been fantastic in the games he has played. He’s stepped up to the level in games against Celtic and Hearts, and in the longer term, I think he's a very good addition to our squad.

He’s someone we are constantly working on, he’s someone who wants to learn and he’s still only young.

"He’s left-footed which gives us more balance on that side of defence and he can play at left-back as well.

"He’s six foot two and he’s quick as well as being very composed on the ball and going forward he gives us a few more options playing out from the back."

It's a great day for the families and that's what is important at St Mirren. We're inclusive and make these days matter to everybody."

St Mirren Women's final home match of the season took place at The SMiSA Stadium on Sunday.

The remaining tickets for our cinch Premiership match away to Hibernian on Saturday 6th May are on sale at the St Mirren Ticket Office. 

The club received an initial allocation of 1,000 tickets for this match and they sold out within two days. Hibernian then sent us another 350 tickets after we requested further tickets and these are only available at the St Mirren Ticket Office. There are currently around 250 of these remaining. 

Hibernian v St Mirren 
Competition: cinch Premiership
Date: Saturday 6th May 2023
Kick-off: 3pm
Venue: Easter Road

Hibernian Ticket Info

Adults - £26
Concession* - £14
12-17 - £13
2-11 - £11

*Over 65s, full-time student with valid matriculation card

Ambulant disabled tickets will be charged at the age-appropriate rate. Must be in receipt of Higher Rate DLA or Enhanced PIP for a free carer's ticket. 

There are five wheelchair & carer pairs available. These are only available at the St Mirren Ticket Office and charged at the regular match price with carer free of charge. 

St Mirren v Heart of Midlothian

Tickets are also on sale for our penultimate home match in the 2022/23 season as Saints host Hearts at the SMiSA Stadium on Saturday 13th May.

Tickets for that match can be purchased online and home match details can be found HERE. Season tickets are valid. 

St Mirren Ticket Office Tel: (0141) 840-6130.

St Mirren Ticket Office E-Mail: tickets@stmirren.com 

Please join us on Sunday 28th May 2023 at the Normandy Hotel, Renfrew, for the Club's prestigious Player of the Year 2022/23 Awards Dinner sponsored by Walker Laird Solicitors & Estate Agents.

Spend an evening in the company of the St Mirren first-team, management and coaching staff at what is Renfrewshire’s premier social gathering.

Prepare to laugh the night away with Scotland’s finest after dinner speaker, former footballer, John Gahagan. Keeping everyone in line will be our MC for the evening, journalist, Foxbar boy and fellow Buddie, Bill Leckie.

We thank Walker Laird Solicitors & Estate Agents for their support as sponsors of the event for the ninth year in a row!

The evening will consist of:

• Three Course Meal served with tea and coffee
• St Mirren Player of the Year Awards 2022/23
• St Mirren Young Player of the Year Awards 2022/23
• St Mirren Official Social Media Player of the Year Award 2022/23
• St Mirren Goal of the season Award 2022/23
• Every guest will also receive a special souvenir event brochure and special corporate gift to commemorate the event.
• Prize Raffle
• Grand Auction

Individual places are available at £85+VAT per person, with a minimum of two places on a shared table basis. Tables are available in multiples of 10 at £850+VAT or 12 at £1,020+VAT.

To reserve packages or enquire about Event & Hall of Fame award sponsorship & commemorative brochure advertising opportunities please contact our Commercial Manager, Campbell Kennedy, on 0141 840 1337 or email commercial@stmirren.com 

Timings

Arrive at 6:30pm to take your seats ready for the evening beginning at 7pm.

The club is running a bus to Easter Road for next Saturday's cinch Premiership match against Hibernian with the potential for a second bus if demand dictates. 

Bus tickets are priced at £13 per seat (cash only) and are available at the St Mirren Ticket Office. Alternatively, you can email commercial@stmirren.com. 

Buses will depart from the SMiSA Stadium on Saturday 6th May at 12:45pm. Strictly no alcohol is permitted. 

Ceara Macinytre and Jennifer Caldwell are lifelong Saints supporters and currently play for St Mirren Women.

They are relishing the opportunity to play at the SMiSA Stadium again.