Van Zanten has signed a new two-year contract with St Mirren

Manager Gus MacPherson said: "I'm delighted to confirm that David van Zanten has agreed to sign on for another two years.

"We had a very productive chat with David's agent and I'm pleased to say that we came to an agreement to make things happen.

"If he had chosen to leave he would have been a major loss to the club."

Van Zanten, 24, was snapped up by the Buddies from Celtic in 2003 and MacPherson added: "He was the club's player's player of the year in the season just finished and you can't ask for a higher accolade from your fellow peers."

The Dublin-born player's future was uncertain for the last two weeks and his decision to remain at the club is a timely boost after the the retirement of Mark Reilly and Charlie Adam's return to Rangers following his successful loan spell.

MacPherson, having also retained the rest of his First Division title-winning squad, is now aiming to add to St Mirren's playing pool for the challenge of Scottish Premier League football next season.

"We've as yet not really spoken to anyone with a view to new signings because we had to prioritise as we were trying to secure the future services of players at the club heading towards the end of their contracts," he said.

"I'm glad to say we have now done that."