St Mirren

Mark Jardine
Fan writer

At this exact point last season, St Mirren had 18 points in the bag and a goal difference of +5.

A four-goal destruction of St Johnstone in their ninth fixture fuelled the fire of European fantasies and kept the Buddies level with second-placed Rangers going into November.

A year later at Tynecastle, despite European memories having since been made and treasured, it was the Saints' turn to take a four-goal pasting and face up to some tough questions.

Characteristically, Stephen Robinson opted not to mince his words post-match. Taking the responsibility on his own shoulders, he nevertheless urged his side to get back to basics, defend better and make smarter decisions.

A once resolute St Mirren back five has become a makeshift back four, hindered by both injury and off-field drama. Several seasons of a heroically dependable goalkeeping conveyor belt have met their first sustained blip. A once irrepressible counter-attacking side have lost their mojo.

Any conversation of pressing a managerial panic button should be banished to the fringes of Facebook nonsense, but tough questions are tough questions. In seasons gone by, short-term thinking might then take those questions and roll those little snowballs down the mountainside until they gather weight.

However, the noises emerging on long-term thinking are far more promising. Initial suggestions are making print that a longer-term deal for the manager is in the works. Consistency and stability have so often neglected football in Paisley, and two years of relentlessly positive development in that direction should not be ignored.

Robinson worked minor miracles with Motherwell not too long ago before third-season struggles moved him to tender his resignation. Motherwell have yet to reach those levels again in the four seasons since.

The apparent thinking in Paisley is to rally behind the man who brought consecutive top-six finishes and European travels, and make sure he's backed through stormy weather to continue that long-term march of progress.

The manager is determined to deliver on that commitment, the club are seemingly working to demonstrate that commitment too - now it's for the fans to vocally follow suit.

Mark Jardine can be found at Misery Hunters, external

St Mirren are close to finalising a new long-term contract for manager Stephen Robinson until 2027. (Scottish Sun), external

Read Tuesday's Scottish Gossip in full here.

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William: To lose 4-0 to a team sitting bottom of the table must surely ask a lot of questions. It is very depressing that our scoring record is so poor. I can see our matches in the next few weeks being tougher than we expected. Ibrox coming up. The international break it seems didn't benefit the team. Pity I can't say anything positive.

Douglas: That was simply embarrassing from St Mirren today. Could have played all night and we wouldn't have scored. No shots on target all afternoon. Played like they were strangers throughout the side. Stephen Robinson's work starts now but I know he will turn this around.

Craig: Absolutely disgraceful performance against a very poor Hearts side. Robinson is right in one sense, Hearts didn't beat us, we beat ourselves! Too many looking for others to do something.

Anon: Totally unacceptable. No structure, no heart. Schoolboy stuff. Unfortunately it is relegation form.

Alan: Another really poor performance, to be honest we have been poor all season and need to sort it out very quickly because before we know it we could be bottom of the league. Our keeper is definitely one of our biggest issues, looks to have very little confidence and the defence look uncomfortable every cross that comes in.

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• St. Mirren failed to attempt a shot on target in this game, it's the first time they failed to attempt a shot on target in a game in the Premiership since facing Celtic on 13 April 2024.

• Hearts have scored in their last four games in the Premiership, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of six games from 28 February 2024 to 13 April 2024.

• Lawrence Shankland has contributed to goals in his last three games in the Premiership (one goal, two assists).

• Shankland has assisted three goals in the Premiership this season (one in this game), more than any other Hearts player.

• Blair Spittal has scored two goals in the Premiership this season (one in this game), no Hearts player has more.

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson: "There weren't enough people who took responsibility.

Hearts didn't have to beat as we beat ourselves.

"We lose possession of the ball for the first goal. When we're in control, in good possession of it, we lose it too easily and then from there, we didn't respond to that.

"We made stupid decisions, poor decisions.

"So, poor decision-making all around and not enough people stood up to be counted and take responsibility, and that's not acceptable.

"The performance is not acceptable and it's on me, arguably one of the worst performances or the worst performance since I've been here, and it's not acceptable.

"It's been the way the last eight or nine games.

"Make no mistake that people think we should be a top-six side.

"No, we shouldn't, we haven't earned the right for that. We need to go back to basics. We're not defending well enough. We're not putting our heads and feet in where it matters to win tackles. We're not playing the ball forward when we should play it forward and taking responsibility."

Hearts recorded their first Scottish Premiership win of the season in new head coach Neil Critchley's first game in charge against beleaguered St Mirren.

Lawrence Shankland's smart edge-of-the-area flick freed Kenneth Vargas to give the hosts their first domestic lead of the season with a powerful strike.

Moments into the second half the hosts strung together a sequence of passes that shifted play back and forth across the pitch before Daniel Oyegoke curled a sensational effort into the top corner from 20 yards.

Stephen Robinson's side were condemned to their third top-flight loss in a row after 17-year-old James Wilson's late tap-in and Blair Spittal's curling effort secured a much-needed win for Hearts.

Were you at Tynecastle or following the action from elsewhere? Have your say here., external

Jack Herrall
BBC Sport Scotland

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A Stephen Robinson St Mirren side would usually be thought of as defensively sound and able to create a few clear-cut chances every game.

They've now lost seven of their last 10 games in all competitions and are routinely punished when falling behind early.

They have failed to win any of their last seven matches when conceding first in the Premiership, and have now conceded 3 goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half, more than any other top-flight side this season.

In addition, they have conceded 9 first-half goals in 9 games, no team has conceded more in the Premiership this season.

While these stats point towards a loss in concentration defensively, their attacking players aren't bailing them out at the other end of the pitch.

They've now failed to score in three of their nine league games and perhaps most alarmingly, didn't register a shot on target at Tynecastle.

Stephen Robinson makes three changes to his starting line-up with Richard Taylor out after hernia surgery, while Caolan Boyd-Munce and Roland Idowu drop to the bench.

Fresh from signing a new deal in Paisley, Greg Kiltie starts for St Mirren this afternoon, with Oisin Smyth and Scott Tanser also in from the off.

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Heart of Midlothian: Gordon, Oyegoke, Kent, Rowles, Penrice, Baningime, Boateng, Spittal, Dhanda, Shankland, Vargas.

Substitutes: Clark, Kingsley, Halkett, McKay, Devlin, Forrest, Wilson, Boyce, Forrester.

St Mirren: Balcombe, Fraser, Gogic, Dunne, Tanser, O’Hara, Kiltie, Smyth, Phillips, Olusanya, Van Veen.

Substitutes: Urminsky, Bwomono, Brown, Boyd-Munce, Adeniran, Idowu, Mooney, Scott, Mandron.

Follow live coverage here.

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Hearts remain without Gerald Taylor, Yutaro Oda and Calem Nieuwenhof while Lawrence Shankland, Stephen Kingsley and Daniel Oyegoke are all trying to shake off minor injuries. Jorge Grant is suspended.

Scott Tanser returns from suspension for St Mirren but Charles Dunne and Greg Kiltie are doubts and Richard Taylor is out after hernia surgery. Alex Iacovitti (tendon) is out long term while Conor McMenamin (knee) is working his way back.

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Greg Kiltie has signed a contract extension with St Mirren, keeping him at the Paisley club until 2027.

The forward joined the Buddies in 2021 and has made 114 appearances, scoring 11 goals.

Speaking to club media, Kiltie said: "I'm delighted to get the deal done.

"I had been thinking about it since the beginning of last year with this being my last year of the current contract.

"I've loved my time so far and when I came to the club there was a lot of ambition about getting into the top six and in the last two years we've finished sixth then fifth so there has been that progression.

"Hopefully being back fit now I can contribute as much as I did last year."

Manager Stephen Robinson added: "We're delighted to get Greg signed for another two years.

"We've missed his quality and football intelligence since he's been injured. He's a big part of what we have achieved over the last two years.

"It's very important for continuity to get players like Greg signed. He can play in numerous positions and will only continue to get better."

We asked for your views on what you want to see from St Mirren.

Here's what some of you said:

Tony: They need to get the ball forward instead of this messing about at the back, it's no wonder we don't score a lot of goals, it's frustrating.

Eddie D: I have said repeatedly that our midfield is not strong enough. Now it looks as if Greg Kiltie is back, we have missed him. Conor McMenamin is hopefully coming back and he will give us a good wide man to get cross balls into the box. Kevin van Veen needs better service and goals will come.

Huey: We require more composure in front of goal and the defence to be more focused from 80 minutes onwards, which is the period when we've been conceding decisive goals. Ellery Balcombe needs to work on coming for crosses and Van Veen needs to get match fit. If we manage to sort out those individual issues, I'm confident we can consolidate a top-six finish.

Eddie M: We have started a bit slow due to injuries and Europe took its toll on the squad. Realistically a top-six place would be good given Aberdeen and Dundee United look strong.

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• Heart of Midlothian have won 15 of their last 19 top-flight home games against St Mirren (D2 L2), winning this exact fixture last season 2-0.

• After their 2-1 win in September, St Mirren could earn consecutive top-flight victories over Hearts for the first time since September 1988.

• Hearts have just two points from eight league games this season (W0 D2 L6), the joint-fewest by any side in their opening eight matches of a Scottish Premiership campaign since the re-brand in 2013 (also Dundee United in 2022-23).

• St Mirren have won just one of their last 10 away league games (D3 L6), a 3-1 victory at Dundee in May.

• Last season’s Scottish Premiership top scorer Lawrence Shankland has had more shots than any player in this season’s competition (31), but has found the net just once (3.2% conversion rate).

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Lennon Miller's second goal for Motherwell against St Mirren in September stood after being reviewed for a possible handball, and Scottish FA head of referees Willie Collum said the VAR officials were "unable to find the evidence to be categorical" about a foul.

Later in the same game, Well's Dan Casey handled the ball on the goal-line to deny Killian Phillips a goal and was shown a straight red.

Mark O'Hara had the resulting penalty saved in the 2-1 defeat.

"In our opinion, this is the correct call," said Collum. "It's a very good piece of teamwork between the assistant referee and the referee.

"There's nothing there for the VAR to think that the referee has made an error there in terms of showing a red card."

With domestic football making its return this weekend, we want to know what you're looking for from your side.

It hasn't been a straightforward start to the season for Stephen Robinson's men, who sit mid-table despite picking up just eight points from eight games.

So what do you feel needs to be improved between now and November's international break?

Give us your thoughts here, external.

Jamie Cockburn
Fan writer

Ah, the international break. A time of reflection and not the time for distraction we would have hoped for (thanks Scotland).

I said at the start of the season, that this would be a difficult season for Robinson and his men. Victims of their own success, taking the Buddies to the dizzying heights of European football, it is a near impossible task the Northern Irishman has given himself.

After our opening game against Hibs, I thought to myself, piece of p… cake, no problem, Europe again here we come. How was I supposed to know Hibs would be incompetent as ever?

Injuries have seriously gotten in the way. Pre-season injuries to Greg Kiltie and Conor McMenamin have restricted the Buddies flow, forcing Robinson to move away from his desired shape, leaving fans frustrated at its outcome.

It's understandable frustration, when looking at the last few teams we have dropped points to. Have they been any better than us? Absolutely not.

But this is why we shouldn’t be frustrated. This is why we should be excited.

We are currently sitting sixth in the table. Toyosi Olusanya is currently joint second in the league's scoring charts, with the team scoring 1.4 goals per game, better than last season (one of our best seasons in more than 30 years), without two of our main creative threats on the pitch.

With Greg Kiltie making cameo appearances off the bench in the last two matches, and McMenamin closely returning to full training, it is safe to say the best is yet to come. That’s without even adding Kevin Van Veen getting up to scratch after a year of very little football.

Now the defence. Well, that’s for another blog.

Jamie Cockburn can be found at the Misery Hunters podcast, external

BBC Sport Scotland chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your questions.

Huey asked: Hi Tom, Saints can't defend a lead and consolidate when we go ahead - we're as likely to draw or lose when we score first - or get back into a game if we go behind.

I don't believe it's a tactical deficit, but as a collective we clearly lack the sharpness and hunger shown by our competitors for a top-six place. Was our European adventure our undoing?

Tom answered: Hi Huey. Nothing is undone. Yes, Europe made life harder (and for a while, a whole lot better) and you've won only once in the seven games since exiting Europe, but among that lot there were also two draws, there were two 1-0 losses and a 2-1 when you had Scott Tanser wrongly sent off.

It's not great, but you've still got a decent shot at a top-six spot, I think. Other teams around you are struggling as well. This is a battle.

If you assume Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen are the top three and Hearts fight back to get a top six, the other two spots are wide open. I think Motherwell will make it. That leaves one. I wouldn't bet against it being St Mirren.

You are losing leads a fair bit and Stephen Robinson will be frustrated by that. I don't think St Mirren lack hunger at all. Some composure, yes. Some concentration at key times, probably. Convert your penalties, hope referees don't make awful decisions against you, like the Tanser one, and you'll be close.

There's also been a bit of off-field drama involving your star recruit. The club could have done without that as well.

BBC Sport Scotland chief sportswriter Tom English has been answering your questions.

Ewan asked: It's again clear St Mirren's struggles will involve scoring goals. Stephen Thompson was our last prolific scorer. Why do you think time and time again Saints are struggling to find that goalscorer?

Tom answered: I'm surprised by this one. St Mirren are actually doing fine for goals when compared to pretty much everybody else in the league.

You've almost scored twice as many as Hearts and from the same number of games. You've got 11 in seven matches. It's not bad. Toyosi Olusanya has scored more than Kyogo Furuhashi, Adam Idah and every player at Rangers.

Last season you averaged 1.2 goals per league game. This season you're on 1.4.

You might not have a prolific goalscorer but they're extremely hard to come by. I think you have enough guys who can score. It's keeping them out that might be the bigger problem.