St Johnstone boss Tommy Wright will only get new signings if and when injuries bite into his squad, Perth chairman Steve Brown has confirmed.
Brown, who insisted the McDiarmid Park club were ahead of the game by retaining so many players before the summer, does not want to spend money “just in case” and see it sitting in the stand.
Wright had hoped to supplement his squad by another two or three, with another striker being one of them.
Brown said: “In January and February the manager was in a hurry to get his personnel signed up as soon as in order to avoid the scramble in June and July.
“We had all these players signed by the end of May, which was unprecedented.
“The knock-on effect is paying 22 players through June, which is an expensive exercise. But to get the continuity the manager was looking for, that’s what we did.
“We could have had a bit of kidology and signed 16, then drip-fed another six through June, I suppose. I’m not aware of any other club signing up as many players in a summer.
“Our wage bill is higher than it was last year. That’s down to the increase in wages for players who did really well for us last season.”
He added: “The manager would like two or three players just incase we have injuries. The manager was given players last season when he needed them because unfortunately we had four or five serious injuries.
“It will be the same policy this year. We won’t have players just incase we need them because it’s too expensive.
“Another three players would be a ballpark figure of £170,000. If there’s somebody out there willing to fund that, please step forward. If we have to replace players, we will.”
Brown was keen to quash the myth that Saints’ Scottish Cup final victory has brought vast wealth to McDiarmid Park.
“It was made to look that we were going to post a £700,000 profit with the Scottish Cup win,” he pointed out.
“That’s not the case. Without the cup we’d have posted a loss. That is fact.
“We’re investing in an all-weather training facility, and putting more money into our youth system and under-20s. You can’t have everything. We’re looking to tie up the manager and Stevie May, which will cost money as well. It all adds up.
“There’s not a windfall that has been talked about. If there is, I’d love to see it.
“The figures I was given for the cup was nothing like the reality. That amount of money has not materialised. It’s £120,000 less. The SFA take a 42% cut, I think it is, of the figure I was given.
“The club has made losses in the last few years, so it’s important to patch up reserves that have been depleted, and there’s a very good chance we’ll post another loss next year.”
The ball is currently in the court of May’s agent as far as that deal is concerned, Brown reported, with a meeting scheduled for the start of next week.
He said: “The summer is never ideal. We decided it would be left until after the Scottish Cup final but the player and the manager were away for five weeks, which isn’t conducive to sorting out a contract.
“Stevie May’s agent is back from holiday on Sunday, and we have a meeting scheduled for the start of next week. It’s with the agent.
“We’ve made him a good offer. Stevie has said he wants to stay, we want him to stay, and it’s important he gets the deal he’s looking for. We’re not pressurising him.
“There’s no reluctance from the club. There’s just elements of the contract which have to be agreed.”