I never want to be in this situation again, says a heartbroken Mallan

Stevie Mallan concedes he is “heartbroken” having come away from the Irn-Bru Cup final on the losing side.

The midfielder, who marked the game by celebrating his 21st birthday, was devastated following Dundee United’s 2-1 victory over the Buddies.

He watched on as Ray McKinnon’s United went up to receive the trophy following the game, and he admits it is something he never wanted to be part of again having thought St Mirren were well-placed to seal the victory following an impressive first half. Mallan said: “It is gutting. “I thought after our first- half performance that we could have gone on to be a couple up.

“The second half proved to be more 50/50. As soon as they got that goal, we were pushing people more further up in an attempt to get an equaliser.

“It is a gutter for all the boys and they are hurting.

“You could see the numbers that the St Mirren fans came out in – it was immense.

“I didn’t expect that big a support and we are devastated to send them all away unhappy.

“It was good for us to get to the final but it is heartbreaking in the end.

“It is the first time I’ve seen another team go up and lift the cup. You’re standing there wishing it was you and I never want to be in that situation again.”

St Mirren must now turn their attention back to league business as they get ready to welcome Ayr United to the Paisley 2021 Stadium on Saturday for a crunch bottom-ofthe-table encounter.

Ayr’s 2-1 victory over Dumbarton at the weekend takes them four points clear of St Mirren, who remained rooted in bottom spot.

But despite the disappointment of losing the cup final, Mallan insists some good may come from the scoreline as they get ready to ramp up their bid to avoid the dreaded drop to League One.

He added: “The gaffer has told us to keep our heads up.

“Maybe it could turn out to be a good thing for us because we know we don’t want to taste that again.

“All the boys will be treating the last of the games as cup finals. Every game for us right now is a cup final.

“We’ve got Ayr and Dumbarton coming up and everyone knows that they are big games.

“They are more important than this final. St Mirren shouldn’t be getting relegated.

“We will be doing everything in our power to keep us up.”