Brian Caldwell: St Mirren chief executive leaves for England

Brian Caldwell is leaving St Mirren after over eight years

St Mirren chief executive Brian Caldwell is to step down from his role at the Scottish Championship club and move to a new job in England.

Caldwell, 46, joined the Buddies, initially as general manager, in 2007, having worked with Ayr United.

He declined to reveal which English club he will be working for after he works his two-month notice period.

"I'm sad to be leaving St Mirren as I've made a lot of good friends at the club and in Paisley," he said.

"I will miss the place as I've had a lot of great memories of this place. I spent a lot of my time here working on major developments from the club, such as the move from Love Street to the Paisley 2021 Stadium and the new training ground. The League Cup win in 2013 was also one of the best days of my life.

"The club has had a tough time recently with its relegation from the Premiership [earlier this year] but my decision to leave has nothing to do with that.

"It's a great opportunity for me both professionally and personally and one I could not turn down."

News of Caldwell's impending departure comes days after manager Ian Murray resigned following St Mirren's 1-0 defeat at Dumbarton, with the Paisley side third bottom of the league.

St Mirren said in a statement: "The board of directors are obviously disappointed to lose Brian, but understand that having served the club for over eight years - and with the option to progress his own career elsewhere - there was always a possibility that an offer would come his way due to the excellent job he has done at St Mirren FC.

"The board wish to thank Brian for his hard work and wish him every success in the future when he moves to his new position after the new year."