Backroom pair depart St Mirren

Jun 1 2012 by Andy Newport, Paisley Daily Express

SAINTS manager Danny Lennon last night confirmed that he has parted company with two members of his backroom staff.

Sports scientist Craig McGinlay and video analyst Grant Cassidy have both left the Paisley club as Lennon tightens his purse strings.

McGinlay was in charge of maintaining and improving the first team players’ general fitness levels, as well as offering dietary advice.

And Cassidy followed the team home and away to film them in action before presenting Lennon with a pile of stats and nuggets of information for him to mull over using high-tech computer software.

However, Lennon has taken the difficult decision to axe the pair in order to maximise his playing budget for the season ahead.

He told Express Sports: “With the way the game is going, budgets are becoming tighter and tighter and I would rather have the finances within a budget for players.

“Basically, it’s about me trying to expand my budget as much as possible but it was a difficult decision because Craig and Grant are absolutely terrific lads and I wish them all the best.

“I could not have asked for any more from them.”

Sports science has become a crucial part of modern-day football as clubs seek to gain even the slightest advantage over their rivals.

But Lennon is confident the Buddies can cope without McGinlay’s services.

He said: “We already have good coverage in terms of match analysis, so we’ll be fine in that respect, and we already have staff who are capable of arranging strength and conditioning programmes.”