Joe Shaughnessy hopes his stellar show against Livingston will see his St Mirren future secured.
The 30-year-old has been in and out of the team due to injury and others being preferred in Paisley.
But with his contract finishing at the end of the campaign, he feels performances like the one produced in Saturday’s 3-0 Premiership romp will go a long way to earning him another deal.
Having been at the club since the summer of 2020, after joining on a free from Essex strugglers Southend United, Shaughnessy admits it’s weird to not be a regular starter for the first time in his career.
The Irishman said: “It has been tough and it is new to me. I don’t know, I haven’t been like this for the last five or six years, but that is football.
“I have seen how other players have dealt with it at clubs I’ve been at and I have learned from them that you don’t get your head down.
“You just make sure that you train well and then when the manager does call on you, then make sure you are fit and last the 90 minutes.”
Shaughnessy — who skippered the Buddies to victory — received high praise from boss Stephen Robinson for the way he conducts himself in and around the dressing room.
The defender put in a solid display against Livi as he kept top goalscorer Joel Nouble and striking partner Kurtis Guthrie quiet — heading away every ball that came into the Saints box.
Robinson credited Shaughnessy with being an “example” to the young players in the team while the stopper certainly feels loved down Greenhill Road.
The defender added: “There have been no conversations had at the minute. It is open on my end [staying at St Mirren next season].
“Hopefully this performance might go some way to doing something there. It is not something that I would turn down but there has been no discussions yet.
“The fans are all brilliant with me — even when I am a sub they sing my name.
“It is something that I have not really had at any other club.”
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