St Mirren captain Steven Thompson spears John McGinn in training

St Mirren captain Steven Thompson has apologised for injuring teammate John McGinn in a freak accident in training.

Thompson threw a spiked pole into the leg of McGinn and the 21-year-old midfielder will miss the rest of the season with a torn thigh muscle.

"I've been shocked by it, to be honest, really down about it," Thompson told the Scottish Sun.

"The pole went about a centimetre into his leg and he's obviously got quite a bad injury. The word seems to be he'll be out for around three weeks.

"I'm just mortified by the whole thing. It was a daft prank. It wasn't like I threw the pole out of anger or anything like that. That's not what happened."

The incident could disrupt St Mirren's battle against relegation, as the Paisley club are currently seven points from safety with four games remaining.