Former Hibs and St Mirren man lands one-year deal with Championship club

Former Hibs man Stevie Mallan has described himself as ‘buzzing’ after he secured a one-year deal with St Johnstone following an impressive trial with the Championship club.

After coming through the youth ranks and progressing into the first team at St Mirren, Mallan secured a move to English League One club Barnsley before returning to Scotland with Hibs during the summer of 2018. After making almost a century of appearances for the club, Mallan joined Malatyaspor on a permanent deal in July 2021 after spending time out loan with the Turkish club.

A two-year spell with Salford City came to a disappointing end last summer following an injury but Mallan appeared to have laid the foundations for a deal with St Johnstone after an impressive performance in a friendly draw with Dundee United led head coach Simo Valakari to drop a major hint that a more permanent move could be in the offing.

He told The Courier: “I really admire the boy coming in to play the game. He showed more than enough. I’d like to talk with him about staying here. Now it’s a matter of seeing what Stevie thinks. He’s a good footballer. I know he wanted to play as much as possible, he looked very good and did very well to play 90 minutes after one training session.

“He wasn’t that much involved in the first half but the things he did off the ball were very good. He was keeping our team structure much better. I was very happy with that. We then started to see the high-class balls behind the line and, of course, the set pieces are a big weapon.”

The Finnish boss has now got his wish after Mallan put pen-to-paper on a one-year deal at McDiarmid Park and will go into the Saints squad for Saturday’s Premier Sports Cup tie at Inverness Caledonian Thistle as the Valakari’s men continue to work towards their first Championship game of the season at home to Partick Thistle on the first Saturday of August.

What has former Hibs midfielder Stevie Mallan said about joining St Johnstone?

Currently playing for Salford City in League Two. | SNS Group

He told the club website: “I’m just buzzing to get back playing football. I’m thankful to St Johnstone for believing in me and I’m really looking to hit the ground running. I was happy with how my body felt in the friendly against Dundee United. It was a tough run-out against a team preparing for Europe – and the boys did well.

“I’m hoping to bring creativity, assists and goals. I pride myself on bringing as much as possible to help the team. I’m determined to show what I have got as an individual and as a team player. The time out has opened my eyes to football and how much I missed it. I’ve got real hunger to do well. I’ve missed waking up on a Saturday and having that feeling of getting out on the pitch with your team-mates and friends.”

Your next Hibs read: What happened to all 21 signings Jack Ross made as Hibs manager