BY KYLE GUNN

KYLE McAllister has revealed he was warned about going back to where it all started. 

The winger rejoined St Mirren on loan earlier this month after leaving for Derby two years ago. 

When deciding where to get game time, Rams staff suggested the lower leagues in England, but there was only ever one destination for McAllister. 

He said: ”When I was talking to Derby they said to me you shouldn’t go back to the club you came from. In my mind, I was in the Championship when I was here and now we are in the Premiership. The staff are all different and so are all the players. I think there are only three guys left in the squad who were here in my first spell. The fans and the stadium might be the same but for me it is like a new club. I see this as a step up rather than a step back.

“I couldn’t have gone anywhere else that was better. I don’t think League One in England is better than the Premiership. I spoke to guys who had played in both leagues and they told me Scotland’s top flight was a better standard. I saw it as a challenge to come back and face big teams.”

Suffering with injury for the majority of his time down south, the 20-year-old has admitted there has been times when he thought about giving it all up. 

READ MORE:Kearney demanding more after Celtic defeat


But with a new outlook on his career and a return to Paisley, he's now he’s ready to play a full 90 minutes once again. 

He said: “When I got told I was out for six months I thought ‘I’ll get through that'. Then they told me it would be another six weeks and I just kept struggling and struggling - and after that it was another full year. 

"In that time I was struggling. I’d think ‘why am I doing this? Why have I came here?'. But I got over that by speaking to my parents all the time. They kept me positive with everything and got me through it. That experience - being away and injured for 18 months straight - has definitely made me mentally stronger.

“There’s a difference between coming on and starting to me. When you come on the game is at full-pace and you’re just starting so it’s a lot harder coming off the bench. You use a lot more energy than you would if you start. Physically, I’ve played a few 90 minutes back in England before I came here which shows I can do it.

"But coming into a man’s football game is a wee bit different but I could play 90 minutes. I feel physically a lot better than I did the last time I was here and I used to play 90 minutes then. So I can get through it.”