OPINION: Conor McMenamin's hard work and determination earns deserved St Mirren move as Irish League once again produces another gem

A promising talent at youth level, it looked like his dreams of starring in the Irish League would hang in the balance after failing to secure first-team football at both Linfield and Glentoran at the start of his career.

However, Lionel Messi once said: "You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it."

If you swap the Nou Camp in Barcelona for Warrenpoint Town's home of Milltown, then you can use that analogy in McMenamin's case.

The winger would drop down to the Championship and get regular men's football with the 'Point as Matthew Tipton and then Barry Gray got to work with the Downpatrick native as they earned promotion back to the Premiership.

It had seemed that the move to Warrenpoint lit a switch for McMenamin as he continued to gain experience in the country's second tier and that you can't take playing in the top flight for granted.

In an interview during his time as a Warrenpoint player in 2016, McMenamin said: “If it wasn’t for Matthew Tipton I doubt I’d now be at Warrenpoint – he gave me so much help at Linfield and kept in contact, pushing me on and helping me out.

“This is a club who are giving me the chance to play week in week out and it’s great that Barry and the staff believe in me.

“It’s time for me to start producing performances and showing my potential to repay that faith shown in me."

To his credit, McMenamin certainly stayed true to his word as he joined Cliftonville in the 2018 summer transfer window, where he quickly turned into one of the brightest talents in the Irish Premiership.

After playing in a variety of positions during his career, McMenamin would make the left wing role his own at Solitude as he tortured defences in a devastating two-and-a-half year spell.

A switch to one of the country's full-time teams looked inevitable and it would be Glentoran who would win the battle to get his services for a second time in January 2021.

McMenamin would make up for lost time as a Glentoran player as his second spell would prove fruitful, netting 42 goals in 109 appearances for the east Belfast side.

Despite not being able to win any of the country's biggest prizes during his time at The Oval, the winger's form would earn an international call-up for Northern Ireland where he made his debut against Cyprus in June last year.

A few questions were raised whether Michael O'Neill would also select McMenamin when he was confirmed as Ian Baraclough's replacement, but he did just that for the recent double header against Denmark and Kazakhstan as rumours intensified about a cross channel move for the 27-year-old.

After St Mirren would see two bids rejected for McMenamin, it looked like the deal might be off for good but patience and willingness from all parties got the switch completed.

Much credit must also go to Glentoran for standing strong in getting a fee they felt was appropriate for their star asset as often clubs in Northern Ireland are seen as a soft touch when cross channel clubs come sniffing.

It is also uncommon for players as 'old' as 27 to earn cross channel moves but it once again shows the growth, interest and quality in the Irish League.

McMenamin will certainly be a loss to the Sports Direct Premiership but he has earned his right to challenge himself in Scotland against the likes of the Old Firm, Hearts and Hibernian.

He will also now be working under a fellow Ulsterman in Stephen Robinson which should make the transition easier, as well as Diarmuid O'Carroll who is a coach at both St Mirren and Northern Ireland.

Whilst I'm sure a few full-backs in the Irish League will be delighted to see the winger move on - it is now time to see if McMenamin can have the same impact over in Scotland.

I have no doubt his hard work and endeavour will give him the very best opportunity to do so.