Robinson: We can still seal our European fate
Stephen Robinson wants St Mirren to seal their own European fate after blowing a golden opportunity at home to Kilmarnock.
With closest rivals Dundee losing at Hearts, a win for the Buddies in front of their own supporters would have guaranteed them fifth spot and a place in the Conference League qualifiers.
Instead Kyle Vassell’s strike means things roll on to midweek. Dundee now need to beat Rangers on Tuesday night to keep their slim chances alive but Robinson insists he’d prefer it if Saints could take care of business themselves at home to Hearts on Wednesday.
He said: “We want to do it ourselves. We’ve had two or three opportunities here in front of sold-out crowds and haven’t quite got the results.
“A draw today might have been arguably the right result but it was Kilmarnock who put the ball in the net.
“But we want to seal European football ourselves. We don’t want to rely on any other result, although the situation might take care of itself before we play.
“We want to finish well and concentrate on playing the boys who are going to be here next year and give them a real opportunity to shine and impress.”
St Mirren haven’t beaten Killie for three years now and Robinson revealed himself to be a big fan of Derek Mcinnes and his players. He added: “There was nothing in the game but I have to give credit to Derek’s side and the players they’ve brought in.
“They’re a really good side, first and foremost with a real know-how. I mean that in the best possible way – they know how to win football matches and defend when they need to defend. Plus, they have quality on the ball. “Kilmarnock might have looked at us as a template before. Well, maybe we now need to look at them as a template for us.
“I think their front two have been fantastic for them all season. They’ve caused us problems in every game we’ve played against them. We’ve got a very young squad but we’re going to be better next season for them having these experiences.
“We have to start winning games when we’re not 100% at our best, which we weren’t today.
“Our more experienced boys weren’t as good as they have been and ultimately we’ve got beaten by our own mistake. And when we got chances we didn’t take them.”