St Johnstone

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St Johnstone wrapped up their trip north with a 2-0 friendly win over Highland League side Huntly.

Stevie May's penalty gave the visitors an interval lead and 17-year-old midfielder Joe Ellison added the second.

Craig Levein's men, who thrashed Nairn County 6-1 on Friday night, visit Arbroath for a friendly on 6 July before their League Cup opener the following weekend against Brechin City.

After the win over Huntly at Christie Park, striker Matt Smith told Saints TV: "It's been good. It's always nice to get back playing games and get minutes in the legs.

"The new players are good characters and have settled in well."

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St Johnstone ran out comfortable 6-1 winners as they got their pre-season campaign under way at Nairn County.

Jackson Mylchreest, 17, put the visitors ahead after 24 minutes, capitalising on a breakaway run up the wing by Adama Sidibeh to turn and drill home the opener.

Striker Mylchreest made it two on the half-hour mark, heading home from a corner to double Saints' lead.

Craig Levein reshuffled his pack at half-time, making nine substitutions, but it was the hosts who were to capitalise, with Andrew Greig marking his return from injury by finding the net after a failed clearance at the corner.

With 20 minutes remaining, however, Saints restored the gap - a Stevie May shot rebounding back into the path of Taylor Steven.

Three minutes later, Sam McClelland headed home to make it four, before David Keltjens' powerful shot clipped in off the post on the 80th minute.

May wrapped up the scoring on the stroke of full time to give the Saints a comfortable start to their Highland double-header.

We asked for your views on where St Johnstone will be 10 games into the new season after the fixtures were announced.

Here's what some of you had to say:

James: Annoyed by the fixtures themselves. Monday night start, followed by two away games and likely only one Saturday 3pm kick off before mid-October (with Celtic game likely to be moved). Long stretches with no home games, then three in one month in November. The default position should be one game at home followed by one away, with limited exceptions.

Graeme: If we don't start well then hopefully Craig Levein and Andy Kirk will be sacked. Cannot see us being anything other than a bottom two team with them in charge.

Neil: Given there's no Old Firm or Hearts and Hibs games in the first month, I'd like to think Saints will have more points on the board early doors than the last couple of seasons!

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St Johnstone boss Craig Levein has been speaking ahead of the club’s pre-season trip north to face Nairn County and Huntly this weekend. Here are some of the highlights.

• Wants to see how young goalkeepers Josh Rae, Ross Sinclair and Craig Hepburn perform in preseason “before I make a final decision about whether we want a more experienced goalkeeper”

• Uche Ikpeazu will miss the first three months of the season after suffering a household accident which has left him requiring knee surgery.

• Josh McPake had “lost his way a bit” after his early days at Rangers, but Levein feels “there's obviously talent there, it's just about whether he's got determination and drive to make his career as good as it can possibly be”

• The club are targeting more central defenders to sign in the next few weeks after adding Jack Sanders to the squad.

• He’s pleased with what he’s seen from pre-season so far, and feels “if you miss preseason it's always difficult to catch up”.

• The pre-season games will see him “play one team for an hour on Friday, then a new team for the last half hour, then flip them around on the Saturday.

• He will take young players up to bolster the squad this weekend in case of injuries but ‘hopefully I wont have to use them’.

Now the fixtures are out, how are you feeling about your side's start to the season?

Where do you think St Johnstone will be after the first 10 games of the season? Will they avoid another relegation battle?

Give us your thoughts, external.

After securing Scottish Premiership survival on the final day last season, St Johnstone have another campaign of top-flight football to look forward to.

Following their Monday night football slot at home to Aberdeen on the opening weekend, Saints travel to Kilmarnock, Dundee United and Hibs in their first five fixtures, as well as having a home meeting with Motherwell.

Over the festive period, Craig Levein's side host Dundee United on Boxing Day before a trip to Celtic Park on Sunday, 29 December.

Saints host Hibs on Thursday, 2 January, followed by the visit of Tayside rivals Dundee to McDiarmid Park.

A trip to Tannadice rounds off their pre-split fixtures on the weekend of Saturday, 12 April.

Canada striker Theo Bair has revealed that he rejected the chance to extend his one-year stay with St Johnstone before joining Motherwell as he felt people did not see him at his best with the Perth club. (Daily Record), external

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

Fixtures for the 2024-25 Scottish Premiership season have been released.

The campaign will kick off with Hearts hosting Rangers at Tynecastle, a repeat of the sides' final league game of last season which ended in a 3-3 draw.

Newly-promoted Dundee United entertain derby rivals Dundee, while Celtic begin their title defence with the visit of Kilmarnock.

Jimmy Thelin's first Premiership game as Aberdeen boss is a trip to Perth to face St Johnstone.

David Gray starts his reign as permanent Hibs head coach away to St Mirren, while Motherwell are to home to Ross County.

The opening round of fixtures will be played from 3-5 August.

St Johnstone kick off their 2024/25 Scottish Premiership campaign with the visit of Aberdeen to McDiarmid Park.

The match will take place on Monday, 5 August at 20:00 BST.

You can find all of St Johnstone's fixtures here

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The 2024-25 SPFL schedule will be unveiled at 09:00 BST on Thursday, and we've got all the information you need before the return of domestic football.

The action in all four leagues kicks off on the weekend of 3 August.

Eight months later, the Premiership split happens on the weekend of 12 and 13 April and the top-flight season concludes on the weekend of 17 and 18 May.

And while it might be too painful to be thinking about the national team, there are international periods in September, October, November and March to bear in mind.

There will not, however, be a winter break this season.

The expansion of Uefa's club competitions - with the new league phase of the Champions League and Europa League running until the end of January - is the reason for that.

The SPFL said the format change "exerts additional pressure on the domestic calendar" and means no mid-season trips to the sunshine for Premiership clubs.

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Motherwell have announced the signing of defender Liam Gordon from St Johnstone on a two-year deal.

The 28-year-old captained the Perth side to Premiership survival last season, but turned down a new deal, instead opting to move to Fir Park.

Gordon made 201 appearances for St Johnstone and lifted both the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup during his long spell at McDiarmid Park.

"We have been working to bring Liam to the club for a number of weeks now," Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell said.

"I've spoken with people who know Liam really well and they all speak highly of him as a person, as well as a player.

"He is a leader and someone who gives everything for the badge. It’s that sort of mentality that we need in our team.

"We’ve brought in a player who was skipper at a team in our league last season, I think that really shows how good a move this is."

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St Johnstone, Partick Thistle and Raith Rovers all interested in Gabby McGill after the 23-year-old striker left Airdrieonians. (Daily Record), external

Read the rest of today's Scottish football gossip here.

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St Johnstone youngsters Taylor Steven and Liam Parker are looking to impress Craig Levein this summer after signing new deals.

Attacking midfielder Steven, who scored 10 goals on loan at Alloa in League 1 last season, has penned a two-year deal while defender Parker has agreed a 12-month extension.

Steven, 19, said: "When you get a chance, you need to take it. That is all you can do. I want to play the games now and get the match fitness up."

And 20-year-old Parker, who has had loan stints at East Fife, Civil Service Strollers and Edinburgh City, added: "We have friendlies coming up soon and we’ll all just be looking to get minutes in the legs and impress the gaffer. Hopefully this year I can catch his eye."

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Callum Davidson and Steven MacLean - the management team that led St Johnstone to double cup glory - have reunited at Queen's Park.

Spiders boss Davidson, who steered the club to safety after taking charge last season, has now brought his former Perth assistant MacLean on to the coaching staff along with ex-Aberdeen midfielder Barry Nicholson.

Davidson and MacLean won the League Cup and Scottish Cup in 2020-21, St Johnstone's greatest season.

MacLean replaced Davidson in the hotseat in April last year but lasted just seven months before being sacked.

"Steven is obviously someone I know well and I am looking forward to working with him again," said Davidson.

"I am sure our players will also enjoy working with him."

We asked for your thoughts on Dimitar Mitov's St Johnstone exit and how the club might replace him.

Here's what you had to say:

Duncan: Did nothing at Cambridge when we plucked him from obscurity. Told his agent to get it done to join Aberdeen and then sang the praises of the brilliant Dons fans. Off you go Dimi.

Tannoyman: Mitov leaving is a big loss, but we've got a good replacement in Ross Sinclair who only missed out last year after breaking his arm. We don't want a panic buy, Craig Levein has done that already. Give Sinclair a run in the team and let's develop our own players.

Pablo: Mitov made it clear that Saints were a stepping stone for him, hence why a release clause was in his contract. He will always be thanked for keeping us up last season, but now hope he follows the long list of Dons keepers that wear clown shoes and have holes in their gloves! A new keeper is now added to the lengthy 'needs' list.

Jim: Give Sinclair and Josh Rae the chance to show their capabilities. Bring in Craig Gordon for a year to support them and play if his experience is required. Both would benefit from seeing him train and his abilities first hand.

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Josh McPake is targeting "goals and assists" after the winger signed a two-year deal with St Johnstone.

The former Rangers wide man was last contracted to League 1 side Stirling Albion, before training with the Perth club at the end of last season.

The 22-year-old has now earned a permanent deal at McDiarmid Park.

"When I came in towards the end of last season, the gaffer wanted a wee look at me. I thought I did well and I really enjoyed training and being with the lads.

"I’ve come back in good shape and I’m looking forward to the games coming up and getting myself fit and ready.

"First and foremost I want to do well for the team. The main thing is that the team does well.

"If the team does well, I will get the benefits out of it. That is the same with everyone else. I want to help the team with goals, assists and creativity."

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St Johnstone have announced the signing of defender Jack Sanders on a two-year deal.

The 25-year-old was contracted to Kilmarnock for the last three seasons, spending the majority of that time on loan. He made 14 appearances in the Scottish Championship for Ayr United during the second half of last season.

Sanders is the Perth side's second arrival of the summer, following Josh Rae through the door at McDiarmid Park.

"We’re really pleased to get Jack on board for the upcoming season," manager Craig Levein said.

"He will provide us with a physical presence at the back but he is also comfortable with the ball at his feet.

"We’ve had a lot of discussions with Jack and it is clear how determined he is to kick on with his career and prove himself at this level."

Defender Jack Sanders is heading to St Johnstone after three seasons at Kilmarnock, most of which was spent out on loan. (Daily Record), external

Read the rest of Thursday's Scottish gossip

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Dimitar Mitov only spent one season at St Johnstone, but his impact was indelible.

The 27-year-old Bulgaria goalkeeper moves on to join fellow Premiership side Aberdeen having been in instrumental in saving Saints from relegation.

CEO Stan Harris acknowledged as much in the club statement confirming Mitov's departure, saying: "Dimitar's performances throughout the 2023/24 campaign were of a consistently high level.

"Those performances were always likely to gain attention from elsewhere and, when Aberdeen showed their interest, Dimitar decided he wanted to move on."

Manager Craig Levein added: "Dimi was a top performer for us and that was reflected in the number of trophies he received at our end-of-season awards night.

"His performances played a key role in helping us secure our place in the Premiership and I’d like to wish him all the very best moving forward."

Mitov, 27, made 41 appearances for the Perth side following his arrival last summer from Cambridge United.

In his 38 league outings, Mitov was kept busy. He made 138 saves, which was the most of any Premiership goalkeeper by quite a distance - the man he succeeds at Pittodrie, Kelle Roos, was next on 122.

And Mitov's save percentage of 71.6 was bettered only by Will Dennis of Kilmarnock (75.3%) and Hearts' Zander Clark (72.7%).

He clearly leaves a big void - so how do St Johnstone fill it? Who should they bring in as Mitov's replacement?

Let us know your thoughts here, external

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Dimitar Mitov says he told his agent to "get it done" as soon as he heard of Aberdeen's interest.

The Bulgaria goalkeeper, 27, has left St Johnstone to move to Pittodrie on a three-year deal after the Dons paid an undisclosed fee to trigger his release clause.

Mitvov, who was St Johnstone's player of the year last season, told the Aberdeen website: "It’s an amazing feeling to be here.

"As soon as heard there was interest from Aberdeen I called my agent and said get it done.

"The club has a huge history, there are lots of good people here, and when we played against Aberdeen I loved the atmosphere the fans created.

"I feel I did well last season, being consistent is always difficult as a goalkeeper, but I worked hard and this is another opportunity for me to improve my game and make the step up.

"I like the ideas the manager has about how he wants to go forward here, the way he wants to play and create a happy environment, connecting with the supporters to get them behind us. Everything he said fits me as a player."

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St Johnstone have announced new deals for six youngsters as they continue to prepare for next season.

Bayley Klimionek, Joe Ellison, Scott Bright, Jackson Mylchreest, Ben McCrystal and Adam McMillan have all signed one-year extensions to keep them at McDiarmid Park.

"They have definitely earned this so I’m looking forward to seeing them for the start of the season and I hope they hit the ground running," head of our youth academy Alistair Stevenson said.

"All of them will be looking to get opportunities to train with the first team and catch the manager’s eye. It’s about how you take the opportunity.

"If the manager does like what he sees, he might be prepared to give them an extended run as part of the squad."

Meanwhile, Filip Franczak, Kyle Scott and Kodi McKinstray have not been offered new deals and will leave the club.

St Johnstone forward Nicky Clark has been reunited with former Dundee United team-mate Ian Harkes, now with New England Revolution, during a visit to the United States and watched another Tannadice favourite of yesteryear, Ryan Gauld, score twice for Vancouver Whitecaps in Greater Boston. (Sun), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish gossip