The Herald - Herald Sport

Davidson insists job not done as he targets play-offs

- CALLUM DENT AT THE TONY MACARONI ARENA

Livingston 1 St Johnstone 1

ST JOHNSTONE manager Callum Davidson insisted his team were still not yet safe from automatic relegation after Jack Fitzwater’s late goal saw Livingston hold them to a 1-1 draw at the Tony Macaroni.

The Livi defender scrambled home a 90th-minute leveller to cancel out Glenn Middleton’s back-post header, leaving 11thplace Saints six points clear of bottom side Dundee with two games to go.

Saints’ goal difference is also seven better, but Davidson said the job was not done yet, although he admitted he has already had an eye on a likely relegation play-off, a tie he wants to take momentum into.

Asked if he felt his side had done enough to stave off automatic relegation, he said: “No, I’m not that type of person – we need to make sure we go and put a good performanc­e in against Aberdeen. We want good performanc­es between now and the end of the season and if we get to the play-offs then we go in in a confident mood.

“I’ve already looked [at the play-offs] for the last 10 or 12 weeks as I was hopeful we would get there. From where we were in January, I think we were five or six points behind Dundee and we wanted to get to 10th and it’s not happened, so next it’s about how we stay in this league.

“St Johnstone don’t have a divine right to be in this league and we’re working extremely hard because we’re desperate to stay in it.”

Livingston boss David Martindale praised his players’ attitude as they chased down an equaliser despite having little to play for as they sit comfortabl­e in mid-table.

He said: “We’ve achieved the objectives from Livingston Football Club’s point of view and it’s up to me as a manager to try and make sure we maintain these standards. The individual target that we speak about at the start of the season is 44 points. We got 44 points last year and we’re sitting on 45 now with two games to go.”

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