The long-running pre-contract saga between St Johnstone and Ross County’s Richie Brittain has been resolved after a dramatic day of twists and turns.
Saints chairman Steve Brown and his opposite number Roy MacGregor, who had previously held a series of talks in a bid to end the stand-off between the two clubs, finally thrashed out a deal at Hampden.
The Staggies will pay a settlement sum in effect a transfer fee for the 29-year-old midfielder, believed to be in the region of £40,000. There had been fears that the matter could have put the entire pre-contract system in jeopardy but the agreement ensures it will be preserved as it stands.
That was something Brown was determined to achieve and he and manager Tommy Wright can now look forward to the club’s Europa League qualifiers next month secure in the knowledge that the Brittain matter has finally been put to bed.
The chairman said: “I am delighted both clubs have managed to resolve this issue amicably and we can now move on.”
“We felt there was a matter of principle at stake and the main thing is that the pre-contract process remains intact and credible going forward. That was more important than any fee as far as I was concerned,” said Brown.
“We believe we have played it by the book all the way down the line. It is unfortunate that this has dragged on for so long but now Tommy can look elsewhere for a midfielder to replace Liam Craig, who left for Hibs on a pre-contract.
“It was important that our manager could focus fully on big Europa League games coming up next month even before a ball is kicked in the SPL.
“Tommy has been very professional and he has a list of potential targets in mind. Now we are in a position to step things up over the next few days.”
Up until the late dramatic development, it had looked like there was no end in sight to what had become an increasingly-bitter battle of wills between Saints and the Staggies over Brittain.
As the Saints players reported back for pre-season training, there was a notable absentee but there were no prizes for guessing the missing player’s identity.
Brittain was expected to clock in at McDiarmid Park at 10am instead, he turned up at County’s Global Energy Stadium, and it was revealed that he had recruited a team of employment law experts to fight his corner.
Back in January, the midfielder had signed a pre-contract with St Johnstone but then performed a dramatic U-turn, saying he wanted to stay with County, citing personal reasons.
Brown was equally insistent that the player should honour the deal he had struck with the club.
However, there was another twist in the tale earlier this month when the Highland outfit revealed they had registered Brittain with the SFA for the coming season and had renewed his deal with the club despite the fact St Johnstone had him formally lodged with the SPL as theirs.
Now though, he will remain a Ross County player following the agreement between the two clubs.
Earlier in the day before the peace deal was agreed, Saints boss Wright had hit out at Ross County opposite number Derek Adams.
He said: “I’m disappointed but not surprised that Richie didn’t show up. But the issue is obviously now much wider than just Richie Brittain and St Johnstone.
“The whole future of pre-contracts is under scrutiny here. But Derek says it’s OK because UEFA, FIFA and managers don’t like pre-contracts anyway. It’s good to see he has now become a spokesman for world football.
“Managers may not like them but we deal with them, as we did with Liam Craig moving on to Hibs. Everyone now accepts it is part of the game.
“They can work for you and against you. It has changed from the early days when clubs might fall out with a player who had signed a pre-contract.
“I don’t see any rule changes coming through from UEFA or FIFA any time soon. Like them or not, they are part of world football.
“It is the first day back for the new season and we should be talking about re-signing Paddy Cregg and the exciting prospect of Europa League games. Instead, we are talking about the Richie Brittain saga. He has certainly had his 15 minutes of fame.”