Davidson always kept faith in Saints process

CALLUM DAVIDSON admits he had concerns when his St Johnstone side were lingering at the foot of the table at the turn of the year.

However, nearly four months on from a run that saw Saints without a win in nine games through December, the Perth outfit have a League Cup trophy in their trophy cabinet and are on the cusp of a top-six finish.

The McDiarmid Park side need to beat Ross County this weekend and hope that St Mirren drop points against Hamilton to land a spot in the top half, but Davidson is just delighted that his team have given themselves a chance.

“It is a little bit out of our own hands. If you asked me three or four months ago ‘you are challenging for the top six and you won the league cup’ I would probably think you are pulling my leg there,” he said.

“I would say I had the belief in the players to get better and we have shown that. We showed great character as it is always tough playing football at the bottom of the league under pressure.

“I think the lads have produced the goods lately, especially in the last couple of months so we have given ourselves a fighting chance.

“I had to question myself a wee bit. I wasn’t sure if what I was doing was right when we lost three or four games 1-0. Some of them were in very unfortunate circumstances.

“I just looked at stats, performances, watched the games again and just believed in what I and the players were doing was right. Little things turned for us. For me the thing I have noticed most is in both boxes.

“We are defending the box better and we are attacking the opposition box better. It is something that we have done and we have managed to get the results we need.”

St Johnstone are now third behind Celtic and Rangers in terms of shots on goal this season. Davidson would like to see more of those chances converted, but he is thrilled with the attacking threat his team now possesses.

He continued: “That’s a huge statistic. We’re near the top for the fewest number of shots on our goal as well.

“Put those stats together and it was proof that what we were doing was right. We try to play at a high tempo in a style that people will enjoy.

“With a bit of quality and composure in front of goal we’ve got results.”

Last time out against County Saints managed to salvage a draw in Dingwall despite not being at their best. Davidson looks at that game as a slight turning point in the Perth club’s season though.

He added: “We’d played Hamilton just before that and had something like 30 shots on goal without scoring. It hadn’t turned for us.

“The fighting spirit was there, though, which we showed when we came back from a goal behind in Dingwall. I don’t look back on that game as the biggest turning point as far as getting results was concerned. That came against Hibs in the semifinal.

“It wasn’t a case of ‘can we do it?’ after that. We knew that we could do it against very good teams then. The belief was real.

“The players realised they could get results in any game, which was huge for us.

“I’ve watched a lot of Ross County recently and there have been some very good performances. They’ve got a big squad with quality in it and have had some good results.”

Davidson confirmed that right wing-back Shaun Rooney is back fit and available for selection for tomorrow’s fixture. Murray Davidson will be the only absentee for the Saints.

I believed in what I and the players were doing