Jim Goodwin praises newly-capped international Alex Greive as St Mirren boss tips Connor Ronan for maiden Republic of. Ireland call-up

The Buddies moved within a point of the Premiership top six after beating Hibernian 1-0 at Easter Road
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Jim Goodwin admitted his St Mirren squad gave Alex Greive a warm round of applause after making his international debut for New Zealand.

The Kiwi-born striker, who joined the Paisley club last month after spending time training with Goodwin’s side, earned his first senior call-up to the All Whites national team and made his first start as a second half substitute in a 3-1 friendly defeat to Jordan.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Goodwin reckons the 22-year-old is destined for a bright future on the international stage as he talked up his January signing.

St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin during his side's victory over Hibernian at Easter Road. Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS GroupSt Mirren manager Jim Goodwin during his side's victory over Hibernian at Easter Road. Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group
St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin during his side's victory over Hibernian at Easter Road. Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group

He stated: “I was delighted for him. We had our debrief of and that was one of the first things we mentioned.

“The boys all gave Alex a big round of applause because he’s another one who’s got great recognition playing for our club, which makes us very proud.

“He’s only been here a short period of time but he’s already caught the eye of a lot of the staff members.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“He’s also caught the imagination of a lot of the supporters too. He’s an exciting one.

“He’s still got a long way to go, a lot to prove and a lot to work on but we’re delighted we could help him get that recognition with New Zealand.

“Hopefully he’s got many more caps to come. He came in after the summer window and obviously we couldn’t register him in time to have him available.

St Mirren goalkeeper Jak Alnwick denied Hibs' Ewan Henderson as the Paisley side claimed all three points in Leith.  Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS GroupSt Mirren goalkeeper Jak Alnwick denied Hibs' Ewan Henderson as the Paisley side claimed all three points in Leith.  Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group
St Mirren goalkeeper Jak Alnwick denied Hibs' Ewan Henderson as the Paisley side claimed all three points in Leith. Photo by Alan Harvey / SNS Group

“In fairness to the boy, he’s taken a hell of a gamble coming over here. He’s certainly not come over for the money. I can assure you of that, because we didn’t have a great deal of budget left.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We offered him the opportunity to show us what he’s made of and the gamble has certainly paid off for him.

“He earned a lot of respect from the staff and myself for being willing to come over here at a real cost. It’s not cheap to come from the other side of the world to Paisley with the accommodation involved.

“However, he backed his ability. I don’t sign many bad professionals that aren’t willing to work hard for the team and Alex is another good example of that.

“His fitness levels when he arrived were exceptional.

“He hasn’t played a great deal of football in New Zealand because of their lockdown situation, but he’s done well so far and hopefully he’ll only get better in time.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Meanwhile, Goodwin has tipped Connor Ronan to earn his maiden Republic of. Ireland call-up after scoring the only goal in a narrow 1-0 victory over Hibernian at Easter Road.

Connor Ronan celebrates after scoring the winner for St Mirren against Aberdeen. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group)Connor Ronan celebrates after scoring the winner for St Mirren against Aberdeen. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group)
Connor Ronan celebrates after scoring the winner for St Mirren against Aberdeen. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group)

The on-loan Wolves midfielder propelled the Buddies to within a point of the Premiership top-six with a powerful drive as national team boss Stephen Kenny watched on front the stand.

Ronan, who ended the club’s four-month wait for a home win against Aberdeen last month, has been a revelation for Goodwin who is desperate to see the 23-year-old involved for international matches against Belgium and Lithuania in March.

Speaking after Saturday’s match, Goodwin said: “Connor doesn’t score bad goals and that’s another one - in front of the Irish manager as well so please god, that will do enough to get him in the set-up.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“I’ve been banging the drum long enough, I met Stephen Kenny there downstairs, I’m always talking up Connor in the press.

“He knows him well enough from the under-21s. I did mention to him not to forget that Joe Shaughnessy and Charles Dunne are eligible as well.

“Jamie McGrath got that recognition for us and I would be delighted if Connor got it playing for us because it would certainly make my job a lot easier when we’re recruiting players, young up and coming players.

“They are going to get an opportunity here to flourish.”

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.