St Mirren chairman Gordon Scott said he will give new manager Alan Stubbs the green light to bring in at least seven signings this summer.

Stubbs was unveiled as Jack Ross' replacement on Monday after the former Hibs boss penned a three-year deal with the Buddies.

St Mirren's planned recruitment drive as they prepare for their top-flight return was put on hold when Ross departed to take charge of Sunderland.

While only Partick Thistle defender Paul McGinn and Aldershot midfielder Jim Kellerman have arrived through the door so far, a host of players have departed after their contracts expired.

Scott, however, said the club will now press on with signings under Stubbs' watch in a bid to get the Buddies up to speed ahead of their Premiership campaign.

He said: "He'll know himself what he wants to bring in, we've got a core of key players at the club, but even before Jack left we knew we'd have to bring in some players.

"Alan will get the funds to do that, to a degree.

"I'd expect six or seven players to come in at a minimum, possibly more depending on how he assesses the squad."

Former Celtic defender Stubbs has signed on for the next three seasons with the Paisley side after enduring a lengthy spell out of coaching since his sacking from Rotherham in 2016.

Scott insisted the length of contract reflected the longer-term planning taking place at the club.

He said: "You have to give somebody a chance to build something, we were building before and want to do so again.

"We want to develop the stadium and increase our turnover so we can compete in the top six.

"But that's not going to happen overnight so we've a long-term ambition not a short-term one."

He added: "We've always said that top six is a long-term target.

"But the target for Alan, football is about entertainment so if we stay in the league and we entertain the fans, that's all I want to achieve this year."

St Mirren received applications from high-profile candidates including Guti and Patrick Kluivert before opting for Stubbs.

Scott said the 46-year-old ticked every box on their wish list of attributes.

He continued: "We looked at a lot of people, obviously, and took a lot of references as to what is successful to be a manager in Scotland and he ticks every box.

"It was important that somebody has a realistic knowledge of the football club, in terms of the wages we can pay, in terms of the budget.

"Alan knew exactly what he was coming into, there were no doubts at all."