St Johnstone lost four big players and big personalities in the summer – all of whom were either pivotal in the double-winning season, Premiership survival campaign the year after, or both.
Courier Sport takes a look at how things are working out for Callum Hendry, Shaun Rooney, Jamie McCart and Zander Clark since they left McDiarmid Park.
Shaun Rooney – Fleetwood Town
After coming back from a minor injury that kept him out of the season opener (a defeat at Port Vale), Rooney has started all three subsequent League One games for Scott Brown’s side.
Brown has deployed him as a conventional right-back in a 4-3-3, rather than the wing-back or right of a three in the middle that were the norm with Saints.
All three points for @ftfc in the match v @Argyle with @BattyDaniel and Joe Garner nailing the goals for the #CodArmy and stellar performances from Shaun Rooney & Ellis Harrison #OnwardTogether pic.twitter.com/DMxZ26YWlT
— Adam Gee Photography (@adamgeepics) August 7, 2022
The fact that Fleetwood have won one, drawn two and only conceded a couple of goals would suggest the Hampden hero has adjust well.
Now for a couple of back post headers…….
Callum Hendry – Salford City
Like Rooney, it was long suspected the man who did more than any other Saints player to keep the club in the top flight would want to head south of the border when his contract ran out in May.
Hendry was made a very good offer to extend but his heart was set on English football.
It’s been a case of so far, so good in League Two.
Hendry has started all four league games, scoring in the first of them, the fans love him and big-spending Salford are top of the table.
The G.O.A.T @Callum_Hendry https://t.co/lrtyWxTJyQ
— Seb (@SebbySCFC) July 31, 2022
A starring role in the next series of ‘Class of ‘92’ beckons.
Jamie McCart – Rotherham United
McCart has an even bigger challenge than Rooney and Hendry when it comes to establishing himself as a first team regular.
He joined a club in the Championship and a pre-season injury didn’t help his cause of hitting the ground running.
McCart’s story is comparable to Jason Kerr’s in regards to an early fitness setback – and in the fact that he has only appeared in the EFL Cup (against Port Vale) to date.
Working in his favour is the fact that Rotherham regularly play with three at the back.
“I’ve just shown Jamie his clips and he admitted because him and Cohen (Bramall) were playing together for the first time, the understanding wasn’t there initially, but it did improve as the game went on.”
For their three league games – the most recent of which was a draw with Ali McCann’s Preston North End – McCart has been an unused sub.
Zander Clark – no club
With less than three weeks until the transfer window shuts, Clark is still a free agent.
That he was Dundee United’s first choice to replace Benjamin Siegrist was an open secret but the Scotland squad man, like the other three who let his contract run down at McDiarmid Park, wanted to sign for a club in England.
Stoke City emerged as the favourites but that move has gone on the back-burner, the suspicion being Michael O’Neill needs to move a goalie on to bring a goalie in.
Clark, who watched his old club win against Motherwell a couple of weeks ago, is far too good a keeper to be sitting in a stand at a weekend.
But, even though he’ll be frustrated a deal hasn’t yet been done, he’s in a strong position to be signed when there’s more movement in the last week of the window.
And you can’t rule out United coming back in for him if Mark Birighitti continues to struggle.
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