Veteran Considine is ready to welcome Saints

WHEN celebrating a milestone birthday on Thursday, Stevie May won’t be short of examples of players thriving well into their Thirties. Callum Davidson signed Ryan McGowan, Jamie Murphy and Graham Carey (all 33) this summer to go with the cornerstone capture of 35-year-old Andrew Considine.

It was a recruitment policy questioned in some St Johnstone quarters but has proved a wise approach. Considine’s final season at Aberdeen was ravaged by a cruciate knee-ligament injury suffered in August. He returned in May to play just 49 minutes in two games before a bitter-sweet farewell. The veteran has overcome that lay-off to star as an ever-present in St Johnstone’s solid defence since moving to McDiarmid Park.

The 1-0 win over Kilmarnock, by virtue of 29-year-old May’s deflected shot off Ash Taylor, was Considine’s 17th outing and surged St Johnstone away from the Premiership relegation zone. ‘There are five or six of us in our mid-30s and a lot of people might think we’re an ageing squad,’ said Considine. ‘But boys were charging up and down the park there in the 96th minute. That was a really good shift. ‘Thankfully my knee has been great and long may that continue.

I’m enjoying the consistent games and helping the team as much as possible.’ Considine’s recent injury struggles allow him to have greater empathy for May, his former Pittodrie colleague.

The striker suffered three ligament tears in the one knee at Preston seven years ago, destroying his hopes of a fruitful career in England. Two years at Aberdeen, under Derek McInnes, saw his goal production sink. Yet this campaign is proving a resurgent one for May (pictured, near right). ‘When he joined us at Aberdeen it was after serious injury,’ recalled Considine. ‘He did his knee down at Preston. I know from my own experience how hard it is to come back from a bad injury — mentally and physically.

It can be horrible. ‘Stevie’s gone through that. The reason you fight your way back is to do what you love most. For him, that’s scoring goals. ‘He came on the scene early and he’s still only 29, so has a lot of good years ahead of him.

‘He actually hit the ground running at Aberdeen and scored a couple of goals early on. I don’t know what happened