It’s time to get in the mix

Spotlight’s back on Saints after time off

James Fowler hopes St Mirren provide the X Factor on their return to action this afternoon — after ditching football for Little Mix on his weekend off.

Fowler will be back in the dugout alongside Jack Ross as the Buddies make the trip through to Edinburgh for their Scottish Cup clash with Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale — a far cry from a seat at the Hydro last weekend.

The Saints assistant manager treated his family to a night watching the pop stars belt out chart-toppers after the Paisley side were handed a weekend off due to a raft of international call-ups.

But, come 1pm today, it will be Fowler and the rest of the St Mirren side taking centre stage in front of their fans, who, themselves, will no doubt be in full voice.

And Fowler insists the side will be ready to hit the high notes as they look to cement their spot in the next round.

He said: “The break came at the right time. They have had a few days off, so it gives you a wee freshness.

“It allows you a few days with the family, or, in my case, go to a concert with the family — that is something you wouldn’t normally be able to do.

“We didn’t see the family much when it was busy last season, so it reminds them I’m around.

“Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale will have always wanted a bigger team and a home draw as well. They have kept it at their ground, which is something they have earned the right to do.

“We just need to be mentally prepared. There are a lot of distance in terms of the league places between the two sides, so it is more about what we do, as opposed to what they do, on the day.

“The cup gave us confidence. Even in the early part of our time here, the cups kept us bobbing along and pushed us in the right direction.”

On a personal level, Fowler admits the Scottish Cup hasn’t always provided the best memories.

But he admitted he does like to remind his gaffer that he once knocked him out of a cup semi-final.

He said: “I did alright in the cups — though the Scottish wasn’t the greatest.

“The League Cup was decent though, I think I beat the gaffer in a semi-final — a Steven Naismith hattrick, so I wind him up about that.”