Craig McLeish insists Marcus Fraser's decision to play through the pain barrier and save St Mirren from the drop typifies why he was the obvious choice to become Buddies captain.
Fraser's Injury and Return
The defender had been told his season was over when he broke his collarbone in a Scottish Cup win over Partick Thistle in March. Yet Fraser was back in the Saints line-up less than two months later. His bravery was crowned when he netted the goal that saved the Buddies from relegation in the pressure cooker play-off final defeat of Thistle at the end of May.
The 32-year-old, also a goal hero in last December's League Cup Final triumph over Celtic, was appointed skipper by McLeish last week, replacing Mark O'Hara.
McLeish's Praise
McLeish said: "We were told Marcus' season was over. The specialist said he shouldn't play on, if he fell on it awkwardly it goes again and he's out for two or three months and might miss the start of pre-season. It just typifies Marcus, the type of player and person he is, that he was willing to put his body on the line and take that risk for us in a time where we absolutely needed him."
"It was pretty fitting that he scores the goal to keep us up. I know there's other boys in those situations that would have had their season done and they would have just seen how it unfolded. But he was desperate to contribute any way he could for us. That's why you can't have enough players like him, boys like him around the place and that's why he's going to lead the group."
Setting Standards
McLeish added: "It sets a tone. It sets the standards around the place, around the club. The under-19s and under-17s are right now in with us, training alongside us most days. They get to see how the first-team players operate and if they see players like Marcus, Alex Gogic and Declan John and even some of the younger players that have broken into the first-team recently, it's only good to develop a whole culture around the place."
Looking Ahead
St Mirren began their defence of the League Cup with a 4-0 win over Dumbarton last weekend and head to Cove Rangers tomorrow. McLeish is confident Fraser can lead the Buddies to more memorable moments after handing him the armband.
He said: "Probably from the outside it seems like the obvious one. But when you're in the building and you see just the influence he has around the place and how he runs the changing room and how he sets standards day in, day out, on and off the pitch, I'm delighted to have him as my captain and with Goga (Gogic) as vice-captain. We've also got a really strong group of experienced players beyond that, with Declan John and Liam Donnelly, Keanu Baccus and Jonah Ayunga. I've got a really good group of experienced players that I can lean on, but I'm delighted that Marcus is the face of it."
