MAKE MINEA DOUBLE Mandron wants credit for first goal against St Johnstone

Mikael Mandron revealed he collared referee Grant Irvine in his quest to be credited with a Buddies brace.

The St Mirren striker insists he got both goals in his side’s 2-0 Premiership victory over struggling St Johnstone on Saturday.

But the first went down as an own goal after Mandron’s shot hit the post then struck keeper Dimitar Mitov before finding the back of the net.

Mandron is determined to make his a double, though, and told how he made a beeline for whistler Irvine to ensure he is on a perfect 10 for the season.

Reflecting on a star show and dominant team performance, he said: “I’m very happy. I thought we played well considering the type of game it was and the pitch wasn’t easy. They didn’t make the game easy for us. I’m delighted with my two goals.

“I’m definitely taking the first goal as mine. I spoke to the referee and he said he put it down as my goal.

“I went to see him at half-time to make sure it was my goal. If you think about it, the goalie doesn’t want to have an own goal against his name.

“I was coming back on the pitch and I asked, ‘ref, that’s my goal?’ and he said yes and I was like, ‘brilliant’.

“As a striker, it’s important to get your goal as well. It’s definitely my goal.

“It’s whatever the ref puts down on the piece of paper, that’s what goes down in history.”

Mandron showed great character to bounce back and produce a superb display after missing a spot-kick and a glorious late chance in the 1-0 defeat to Livingston.

The 29-year-old said: “We all played really well that day but we just couldn’t score.

“I missed a penalty and a couple of chances but that’s part of the game.

“In certain games, you are going to go through tough times. You just have to be ready for the next game.

“But because we played well and we’ve been getting good results before that, the team is in good spirits.

“We were very confident and looking forward to putting things right.”

Mandron and boss Stephen Robinson had a heart-to-heart ahead of the second half of the season.

And the French-born forward reckons it has inspired his purple patch of form.

He added: “The gaffer has been great for me.

“I had a little chat with him about things that he thought I could do better and what he wanted me to work on.

“I have definitely put that into practice. I’m playing to my strengths.”