The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Saints should not be fazed by run-in
This year’s bottom six post-split fixture announcement has not been controversial. Certainly, when you compare it to last season.
From St Johnstone’s perspective making Steven Maclean’s side play Kilmarnock – a relegation rival – a third time on their artificial pitch stung.
This time around, it was a pretty straightforward job for the SPFL computer to not give one club a significant grievance.
There was an acceptance at Mcdiarmid Park that the main thing was every club getting a 19 home and 19 away split for their season, which meant a third trip to either Easter Road, Pittodrie or Dingwall for Saints.
Courier Sport has assessed the reasons for St Johnstone to be cheerful.
As every Saints season ticket holder will tell you, Craig Levein’s side do not win many games at Mcdiarmid these days.
By the time Premiership football resumes, it will be a wait of over four months for a victory.
Since beating Hibs on December 16, Saints have drawn three and lost four. They have won three on the road during that period.
That is why playing three times away will not faze Levein.
It would, however, have been a bitter pill to swallow if the key game of the five – the clash with their playoff rivals – was the one that got flipped.
That is chiefly because Ross County’s away form is even worse than Saints’ home record.
They have not won on opposition territory since September 2 at Rugby Park.
The tight pitch in the Highlands clearly suits their players and Saints really did not want to lose home advantage for this match.
A midweek fixture under the Mcdiarmid lights, the fourth of the five-game programme, is ideal.
Both Saints and County would have liked a game against the Dons first up. There are two reasons.
The first is that their only combative midfielder, Graeme Shinnie, will be suspended for one league match after being sent off against Dundee at the weekend.
After Bojan Miovksi, he is Aberdeen’s most important player.
Saints’ chances of beating them for a third time would have increased without Shinnie winning tackles in the middle of the park, as would County’s.
The other factor is a victory against the Dons would have turned a twoteam battle into a threeteam one.
Saints would be just one point behind Aberdeen and Pittodrie panic would surge. That could, of course, still happen if Levein’s side can beat Hibs and Aberdeen lose to Motherwell.
Twelve months ago, Saints had a bit of an insurance policy, which they did not end up needing, after being given a fixture against Livingston as their season-ender. Facing a side you know will have nothing on the line is the ideal scenario if you desperately require a win.
Saints fans in their late 30s and older will remember the Perth club was relegated at Fir Park in 1994 and they will also be aware of the potential irony of Theo Bair sending them into the play-offs.
But, put that to one side, and the possibility of the current Motherwell team having half a mind on their summer holidays makes this a perfectly acceptable last day fixture.
Livingston have one last roll of the dice.
County are the nearest team to them and they will know victory is the only chance they’ve got of pulling off the Premiership’s greatest ever survival mission. This certainly was not the opener you would have chosen for Saints.
It is all or nothing for David Martindale’s men and County are the team who will have to combat that.