Richard Brittain cancels pre-contract

[The Sea-gull]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22169825

This could be interesting. I do worry about our deal with Liam Craig if Brittain wriggles out of his.

Purely because McInnes is now at Aberdeen and any connection he and Craig have.

[JimBHibees]

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22169825

This could be interesting. I do worry about our deal with Liam Craig if Brittain wriggles out of his.

Purely because McInnes is now at Aberdeen and any connection he and Craig have.

Very unusual to be honest though I cant see it having any impact on Craig IMO.

Wonder what his reasons are?

[cam75]

There was a hibs player youth player that was ment to go to Celtic,I'm sure it was GS who ripped up contract and let him stay at hibs ?

[CallumLaidlaw]

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There was a hibs player youth player that was ment to go to Celtic,I'm sure it was GS who ripped up contract and let him stay at hibs ?

Darren McCormack maybe?

[MotherSuperior]

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There was a hibs player youth player that was ment to go to Celtic,I'm sure it was GS who ripped up contract and let him stay at hibs ?

I'm pretty sure that was Darren McCormack

[Future17]

Could be interesting.

I'd expect the contract to be cancelled by St Johnstone as it probably isn't worth their hassle/potential expense/reputational damage trying to enforce it.

I would have sympathy for them though. More and more these days, clubs are required to plan player budgets and the size of their squads well in advance of the new season and this will shake their planning in that regard. Who's to say that, had they not planned to sign RB, they would not have offered LC more money to stay?

One thing is for sure, Sergio Berti will be spitting mad.

[leithsansiro]

From a St J perspective, it's probably best if they agree to it as they surely don't want a player who doesn't want to be there. That said, it again emphasises that player power is supreme in football and that contracts realistically are becoming weaker. Isn't he in breach of contract?

[Winston Ingram]

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Could be interesting.

I'd expect the contract to be cancelled by St Johnstone as it probably isn't worth their hassle/potential expense/reputational damage trying to enforce it.

I would have sympathy for them though. More and more these days, clubs are required to plan player budgets and the size of their squads well in advance of the new season and this will shake their planning in that regard. Who's to say that, had they not planned to sign RB, they would not have offered LC more money to stay?

One thing is for sure, Sergio Berti will be spitting mad.

I wouldn't bet on it. Depends on what his reasons are and what he does next. If he bins them to sign for a bigger club then I can't see them going quietly.

On the flip side, if there's say a family issue and he stays at RC then maybe

[leithsansiro]

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I wouldn't bet on it. Depends on what his reasons are and what he does next. If he bins them to sign for a bigger club then I can't see them going quietly.

On the flip side, if there's say a family issue and he stays at RC then maybe

This would seem only reasonable outcome that wouldn't result in St J making a huge fuss

[Eyrie]

I'm thinking that the best way for St Johnstone to prevent this setting a precedent is to say that they will hold him to the contract but loan him back to Ross County in exchange for them paying his full wage.

[Future17]

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I wouldn't bet on it. Depends on what his reasons are and what he does next. If he bins them to sign for a bigger club then I can't see them going quietly.

On the flip side, if there's say a family issue and he stays at RC then maybe

True. I was assuming he would be staying at RC based on the way the article was written, but it's a good point.

[Danderhall Hibs]

Maybe we've offered him a deal that wasn't on the table when he signed for st j?

[Stonewall]

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Could be interesting.

I'd expect the contract to be cancelled by St Johnstone as it probably isn't worth their hassle/potential expense/reputational damage trying to enforce it.

I would have sympathy for them though. More and more these days, clubs are required to plan player budgets and the size of their squads well in advance of the new season and this will shake their planning in that regard. Who's to say that, had they not planned to sign RB, they would not have offered LC more money to stay?

One thing is for sure, Sergio Berti will be spitting mad.

There is no contract with St Johnstone at the present time as he is still under contract with his current club.

I was under the impression that a pre contract agreement is not legally binding on either party. Perhaps someone could confirm

[MrSmith]

Time to curb pre-contracts and get back to end of contract talks only!

Waste of time and space and only unsettle managers, fans and players.

[ekhibee]

Has now seemingly changed his mind and decided to stay with Ross County even though he's signed for St Johnstone.

[Leishy1995]

It's him who pays st Johnstone as he has breached the contract

[J-C]

I heard there was personal issues here, his wife is pregnant and her family are up in Dingwall, also Ross C were in no position to offer him a contract at the time but since their good season, more money has become available. No monies have changed hands, so rip it up and get on with it.

[Leishy1995]

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I heard there was personal issues here, his wife is pregnant and her family are up in Dingwall, also Ross C were in no position to offer him a contract at the time but since their good season, more money has become available. No monies have changed hands, so rip it up and get on with it.

He has signed though, and by law had a contract which will need to be obliged. He has to pay damages to the saints I believe.

This will set the precedent for players in the future though, maybe a ZNr Doyle will be watching this story.

And lastly, convent I was in law today!

[marinello59]

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I heard there was personal issues here, his wife is pregnant and her family are up in Dingwall, also Ross C were in no position to offer him a contract at the time but since their good season, more money has become available. No monies have changed hands, so rip it up and get on with it.

It doesn't matter that no money changed hands. He signed a contract. St Johnstone would have been planning for next season on the basis that his position was covered. Hopefully a common sense solution will be found though.

[500miles]

If I remember correctly, pre contracts aren't worth much. That's why it was so easy for Darren McCormack to change his mind when Celtic initially gave him one.

[Brooster]

Spot on. Pre contracts can be ripped up at any time. They are not really worth much. If Britton was to get badly injured then st Johnstone could rip the pre contract up. Saying that I think Britton is out of order.

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If I remember correctly, pre contracts aren't worth much. That's why it was so easy for Darren McCormack to change his mind when Celtic initially gave him one.

[Andy74]

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Spot on. Pre contracts can be ripped up at any time. They are not really worth much. If Britton was to get badly injured then st Johnstone could rip the pre contract up. Saying that I think Britton is out of order.

Like any contract both sides have to agree to rip up or there will be a claim. They are worth as much as any contract.

[StevieC]

A contract was signed and therefore St Johnstone are due compensation.

You can't be allowed to go around signing contracts and then ripping them up, Scottish Football is in a big enough mess as it is without creating more havoc.

[brianmc]

A contract hasn't been signed,a pre-contract "agreement" has. I'm pretty sure these are not legally binding.

[Andy74]

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A contract hasn't been signed,a pre-contract "agreement" has. I'm pretty sure these are not legally binding.

Depends entirely on wording. You can't agree to agree in future but you can agree to a contract with effect from a date.

[worcesterhibby]

I believe a pre-contract IS a contract. Basically It's a contract that you sign that agrees you will sign a professional football contract with the said club as soon as you are free to do so (your existing professional football contract expires). It may contain "get out" clauses (injury, the new club being relegated etc) but it is unlikely to include a "get out" clause for the player just changing his mind.

There is too much power in the hands of the players as it is. He needs to pay compensation if he has now changed his mind.

[Caversham Green]

I can't see that there would be much in the way of compensation needed here in any case. The player agreed to play for the club and the club agreed to pay him a wage for doing so. It's not now going to happen so the player will play elsewhere and the club won't have to pay the wages - neither side has really lost anything that can be evaluated. It's possible that agent's fees have been paid and St J maybe paid a 'signing' fee, if so I would guess that Britton would have to repay those but that aside I reckon both sides will just go their separate ways.

[Zazu62]

After watching the st Johnstone Ross county game on Sunday I thought his celebrations were a little over the top after he scored that penalty ... Looked like he was pissed of big time ??

[Andy74]

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I can't see that there would be much in the way of compensation needed here in any case. The player agreed to play for the club and the club agreed to pay him a wage for doing so. It's not now going to happen so the player will play elsewhere and the club won't have to pay the wages - neither side has really lost anything that can be evaluated. It's possible that agent's fees have been paid and St J maybe paid a 'signing' fee, if so I would guess that Britton would have to repay those but that aside I reckon both sides will just go their separate ways.

Don't see that. Same could be said for anyone walking away from a contract. Makes no odds they don't have to pay the wages they had a contract to be stuck to.

[Caversham Green]

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Don't see that. Same could be said for anyone walking away from a contract. Makes no odds they don't have to pay the wages they had a contract to be stuck to.

They did, but neither side has actually lost anything in monetary terms (other than the fees etc. I mentioned) and there's no damage to reputations or prospects so any compensation would likely be negligible and not worth the legal fees needed to chase it.