Livingston boss hails 'leader' after veteran ace pens new deal

Andrew Shinnie has been hailed as a ‘leader’ after the veteran midfielder signed a one-year extension with Livingston.

The 33-year-old, who has a Scotland cap to his name, will enter a third season in West Lothian following his move from Charlton Athletic in 2021.

Lions boss David Martindale admitted that it was “vital” to keep hold of the former Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Birmingham City star given the expected summer departures of some senior members within the squad.

Skipper Nicky Devlin, along with defender Jack Fitzwater and midfielder Stephane Omeonga, will depart the club, while top scorer Joel Nouble is expected to attract offers from England.

Speaking to the West Lothian Courier, Martindale said: “We’re going to lose a lot of quality and experience on the park and in the changing room. It was important that we tried to keep as much of that as possible and Shinnie falls into that category.

“He’s one of the two or three fittest players at the club – take away sprinting, he’s easily up there. That shows that although he’s a little bit older, he leads by example in terms of how he lives his life away from the club and the work ethic when he’s in the building.

“He’s a perfect example for the young players and we do have a very young squad. There’s a lot of players here with not that much game time at this level.”

Martindale added: “He’s got the ability or obviously I wouldn’t be signing him here, but there’s a huge amount of added benefits with having him at the club. The boys always go to him for advice and I know it’s always going to be positive.”

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