SAINTS TO THE CORE

Robinson hails his squad stalwarts for helping integrate new arrivals

- TAYLOR MURRAY

Stephen Robinson says having a core squad he can trust has been the backbone of St Mirren's success.

This summer, the Buddies have made 11 signings in total - with nine of them being new faces - in a bid to replace the talent which has left the club.

Liam Donnelly, Richard King, Ryan Mullen, Jayden Richardson, Jalmaro Calvin, Tunmise Sobowale, Miguel Freckleton, Malik Dijksteel and Shamal George have all entered the building so far, with Killian Phillips and Roland Idowu turning loan moves into permanent switches.

But gaffer Robbo says his job integrating the new recruits has been made easier due to the quality core that has been in place for years.

The Northern Irishman said: "Our spine; that core is important, and it's probably something St Mirren haven't been able to do in previous seasons.