The Fir Park gaffer faces an anxious few days as he waits to see if out-of- contract quintet Keith Lasley, Stevie Jennings, Stevie Hammell, Tim Clancy and Lee Hollis will accept the new deals tabled their way.

McCall remains hopeful that four out of the five will agree the new terms with midfielder Jennings, who is believed to be keen on a return to England, the main doubt.

But the Well boss admits he has already started leafing his way through a list of almost 700 players who will be free agents.

And he is determined to maintain the Steelmen's status as best of the SPL rest behind the Old Firm. McCall said: "To have finished third has been a real achievement.

"Last year we were sixth and reached the Scottish Cup final and the semi-finals of the League Cup. I thought we might struggle to repeat that.

"Given that we have one of the tighter squads in the SPL you always think that at some stage you will be crippled by suspensions or injuries or both but I am really proud of the players."

He went on: "To sign off on 62 points, which is the club's best-ever SPL points haul, is very satisfying indeed.

"So I am very proud of all of my players and what they have achieved and also of the back-room staff who have played a key part in the success.

"When I heard the Champions League music blaring out of the tannoy before the Dundee United game on Sunday it gave me a wee wry smile but it just underlined what a great season it has been.

"But while I was happy to tell the players to go away and enjoy themselves, for me the planning for next season has already started. We do not have time to rest on our laurels.

"I have already begun to sift through the lists of players who are now available. Ultimately what I am able to do will depend on who re-signs and they know I haven't got time to hang around.

"I would hope to have their situations resolved by the end of the week. The Champions League qualifiers are at the end of July.

"That could be our next game at Fir Park and it's vital we are ready for that and the new SPL season."

McCall also paid a glowing tribute to retiring club captain Stephen Craigan who was given 79 minutes of the SPL finale with United to say his goodbyes to the support.

The boss said: "Originally I was only going to give Stephen an hour but I thought he was pretty comfortable out there and for me that underlined he could easily have played on for another season.

"He has been a massively positive influence on the younger players here . He reminds me of Richard Gough with the level of professionalism he brought to training every day.

"But he has made his decision and we wish him well for the future."

Meanwhile, the knee injury that saw Stevie Hammell stretchered off after just 13 minutes is not expected to prove serious.