SAINTS DUE 10 PENALTIES, CLAIMS TEALE
IT’S an old footballing adage that bad refereeing decisions even themselves out over the course of the season. But Gary Teale reckons that, if it is going to happen for his St Mirren team, they will have to be awarded 10 penalties in their remaining three games. Teale has been a constant critic of the officials this season, believing that a long line of contentious decisions have gone against the Buddies in their battle against the drop. His latest gripe came after referee Craig Thomson failed to give his side a penalty against Partick Thistle at Firhill last weekend for a foul on Jason Naismith. The match was goalless at the time and the Paisley side went on to lose 3-0 and edge closer to the trapdoor. Teale conceded there is no point in his team’s luck turning now, however, with a draw for Motherwell at home to Kilmarnock tonight enough to effectively confirm St Mirren’s relegation. ‘I got myself into trouble about it before but last week at Partick, we had a massive penalty call go against us,’ said Teale. ‘I’m not saying we’d definitely have scored the penalty but they’d have been down to 10 men because it was a sending off and the game changes. ‘People say these things even themselves out over the course of a season. There aren’t enough games left in this season for things to even themselves out, with the luck I’ve had since I came in as manager. ‘You’d probably be talking about 10 penalties in the next three games. ‘I won’t say too much about it but you would just like something from the referees.’ Teale, who has been seeking clarification on his future from the St Mirren board, will be at Fir Park tonight hoping that his side’s match at Ross County 24 hours later still has some meaning. But he admits the Buddies have gained some perspective from the plight of Aaron Woodall, a six-year-old Saints academy player who is battling cancer and was this week voted by fans as the club’s player of the year. ‘It will be difficult if the result goes against us on Friday,’ said Teale. ‘You never want to be relegated but you can’t bury your head in the sand. You need to deal with it, restructure and build for the future. ‘But Aaron comes to all the games and he puts football in perspective. The fans voted Aaron player of the year and it was a nice gesture. We wish the boy and his family a healthy future.’