JON: THAT GOAL WASLAUNCHOF OUR LEAP YEAR
JON OBIKA believes his matchwinning goal against Hearts last season helped lay the foundations for St Mirren’s top-six push in this one.
Today marks a year since the striker sealed a 1-0 victory over the Jambos, pushing Saints six points clear of bottom.
The season was stopped less than 48 hours later, with Jim Goodwin’s Buddies staying up as positions were settled on a points-per-game basis.
Obika insists his team-mates knew just how important the Paisley clash was, with Covid having arrived in Scotland.
And he feels the fact they stepped up when it mattered most has helped them navigate their way through this difficult campaign to earn a shot at a historic top-half finish.
The 30-year-old said: “It was a great game to be a part of. It was the last game the fans were in the stadium. I can’t believe it has been a year already.
“There was a lot of talk in the build-up to the game about what was going to happen with the rest of the season.
“It felt like a really significant game and we knew it was a chance to make sure we were safe. It was still in our hands to do that and move away from the bottom of the table.
“We would have loved the season to go on but, in the end, I’m glad we did enough to make sure we stayed up.
“The memory of that goal stays with me. During the game everyone’s buzzing, the boys were all around me. I remember going up to the crowd and seeing them going crazy. When I watch it back, which I’ve done a few times, you can hear the fans so clearly. They’re so loud.
“That’s what football is all about. We play for the fans, they’re the ones there every week. To see them buzzing after the game gave us a lot of joy.
“It also gave us that mental toughness we’ve needed this season. During that game you could see how much both teams wanted the points.
“But we came out on top. We came back into the dressing room, looked around and said, ‘This is the standard we’ve set now.’”
Saints are three points from guaranteeing a top-six finish for the first time since 1985.
They face Hamilton in their final game before the split and Obika added: “This time last year we were going into a crunch game to stay up.
“Now we’re heading into a crunch game to make it into the top six. Again it’s in our hands. That puts some perspective on how far we’ve come.
“It’s different pressures but our goal this season has been to get into the top six.
“We’ve shown we can turn up on big occasions and hopefully we can do the same again when we play Hamilton.
“I’ll be raring to go from the beginning, hoping to make my mark again for the club.”