Danny Lennon ready to go with squad he has as TV deal remains unclear

Fears over the potential financial impact on SPL clubs from the turmoil at Rangers has been eased to an extent by the news that Sky Sports and ESPN are both set to continue their coverage of the top-flight, but St Mirren manager Danny Lennon admits he is still in the dark as to whether cash from the TV deals will allow him to strengthen his squad further before the end of the month.

“We still don’t know any concrete figures at this moment in time,” said Lennon, whose side open their campaign this afternoon against Terry Butcher’s Inverness Caley Thistle. “Hopefully by there will be clarification on that.

“If it happens, it’s a welcome bonus. I’m working on the basis that this is what I have going into the new season so, if anything comes back into play, it’s a bonus.

“Every manager would like to have money at their disposal so that they can strengthen. If you look at any part of your team, you could strengthen if money wasn’t an issue.

“I’m delighted with the personnel that we have at our football club. I certainly believe this group of players will make us stronger.”

Steven Thompson, Jim Goodwin and Marc McAusland are suspended today, while Graham Carey is injured.

Lennon added: “Every player is going to be a valuable member of what we are trying to achieve this season. When you have not one, but four, key players out, the group is going to be affected. We will still manage to get a strong 11 out there so it’s about focusing on that and getting the job done with the resources that we have. “I would rather focus on the players that I have at my disposal than the ones that I don’t.”

Meanwhile, Inverness winger Aaron Doran, who struggled with shoulder and hamstring injuries last term, has been highlighted as a replacement for the departed Jonny Hayes and is champing at the bit ahead of the new season as he bids to make a big impact.

“In pre-season already I’ve played 
six or seven games which is nearly as many as I played in the whole of last season,” said Doran. “I’m feeling sharp and feeling good.”

The loss of Hayes is a blow to Inverness. The winger rejected a new contract at the club to join Aberdeen, but Doran is ready to fill his boots.

He added: “Jonny did really well when he was here so the 
fans are going to be expecting a lot from me because they want to see what I 
can do.

“Hopefully I can show them I can be as good as, if not better than, Jonny,” he added.