ST MIRREN boss Ian Murray can’t believe Scott Agnew is still playing part-time football at 27 – and reckons the midfielder would be a terrific acquisition for any club.

The pair were together at Dumbarton for two-and-a-half years where Agnew, who joined in 2011, became a firm fans’ favourite.

The player is now in America on holiday and will decide his next move when he returns after deciding to move on from The Rock.

Despite reports to the contrary, Agnew is not certain to sign for St Mirren, although Murray would love to work with him again.

He told SportTimes: “We’ve not signed him despite people putting it out there that we have. Aggy, though, has quality, no doubt. For me, he and Chris Turner were the best midfield pairing in the league last season outside of Hearts.

"I told Hibs and Hearts to look at them a year-and-a-half ago and they didn’t. Now Chris has gone to Hamilton, which is great, and Aggy has offers.

"We’ll speak when he comes back from his holiday later this month. I know there are three other teams in for him. His quality is excellent and he has a great attitude.

"He is all left peg, but he is quality on the ball and shouldn’t be playing part-time football at his age. People will be surprised when they see him play. There are two or three more down there who deserve their chance.”

Murray would not hesitate to return to old club Dumbarton to bolster his squad.

He added: “Yeah, we’d go back there to sign guys if we could. There are good players there who maybe just need a bit of guidance. Full-time football would help them massively.”

So far Saints have signed just one player – the returning Alan Gow – and Murray would like at least another seven in the door before the season starts.

“Ten new players might be a push with the finance. We would rather have eight good ones, rather than six good ones and four average ones. If we needed players at short notice then there will be a few in the academy, we’re sure, could come in and help us.”

Murray, who is currently in Prague studying for his Pro License, has not set targets for the new season beyond lifting morale at the club, but said they may revise things if the campaign starts well.

The St Mirren squad report back for initial fitness testing tomorrow, before full training resumes next week.

He added: “Only one team can win the league and only three can get in the play-offs. If we’re there or thereabouts come Christmas then maybe we’ll have to revise our goals.

"At the moment it’s just about bringing back a feelgood factor to the club, getting the young players progressing and the team playing better. And then we’ll take it from there.

“St Mirren are a bigger club than the likes of Queen of the South or Raith Rovers. The fanbase tells you that. Falkirk have got a decent support, but you look at Raith and their crowds have dwindled to around one thousand. Queen of the South have around the same.

"We’ve sold around two thousand season tickets and so, realistically, we’re a wee bit ahead of some of these clubs. But we have to keep that going.”