St Mirren

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• After going unbeaten at home against Hearts in the top-flight between November 2011 and March 2020 (W4 D4), St Mirren have since won just one of their last five such meetings with the Jambos at the SMISA Stadium (D2 L2).

• Hearts won their last meeting with St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership 2-0 in December, and are aiming to beat the Buddies twice in the same league season for the first time since 2021-22, when they won all three of the meetings between the two sides.

• St Mirren have won each of their last three home league games, scoring exactly twice in each win; the Saints last won more such games in a row in October 2022 (four in a row).

• None of Hearts' 15 away games in the Scottish Premiership this season have ended level (W9 L6), the longest stretch of such matches from the beginning of a season by any side since St. Mirren didn’t draw any of their first 16 games on the road in the 2013-14 campaign.

• Hearts’ Lawrence Shankland tops the Scottish Premiership this season for goals (20), points won thanks to goals (18), and percentage of a side’s goals scored (50%).

St Mirren may be five points clear of seventh-placed Hibs but with a final game against Celtic before the split, Stephen Robinson's side will want to secure top six when they face Hearts this weekend.

Who would you pick for Saturday's game? Tell us here.

Scotland Under-19s head coach Billy Stark has announced his decision to retire at the end of this month, and believes the future is bright for the national team.

Stark's impressive playing career saw him turn out for St Mirren, Aberdeen, Celtic, Kilmarnock and Hamilton, before he managed at clubs such as Morton, St Johnston and Queen’s Park.

He had a spell as Scotland Under-21s manager, before taking up his current post in 2018.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time working with the best young players in Scotland throughout my two spells at the association," Stark said.

“I would like to thank the staff and players who have helped me throughout the years.

“Regarding our most recent group, we are proud of the achievement to qualify for the elite round and, although it was disappointing not to progress to the finals, the players in this group will be better for the experience and I am certain we will see them continue to flourish in the future.”

Mark Jardine
Fan writer

For a second league outing in a row, Stephen Robinson could have spent his half-time break gazing lovingly at the league table.

That being said, Motherwell's equaliser at Fir Park on Saturday did not carry quite the same trauma as the turnaround at Rugby Park a fortnight earlier.

Marcus Fraser was the unlikely goal scorer in black and pink, nodding home from an early corner.

The Saints would have fancied their chances at guarding a one-goal advantage and were not all that far from doing so once again.

But to quote an old proverb: 'Never let your guard drop against a Motherwell team led by a striker having an inexplicable golden season'.

Forget Kevin van Veen, we're living in Theo Bair's world now.

Matching Kilmarnock's point at Tynecastle keeps things as they were in the chase for fourth but affords the Ayrshire side the luxury of knowing their top-six place is secure.

For Robinson and his men, that confirmation will need to wait for at least a further week. Five points clear of Hibs in seventh with six left on the table, it's tempting to obsess over the final post-split fixtures and catastrophise.

Should Hibs see off basement-threatened St Johnstone at home and hold their nerve at Fir Park, the Saints will more than likely need to gather more than a single point in their corresponding matches to escape the very real threat of goal difference having a say.

Those corresponding matches? Hearts at home and a trip to Celtic Park. Gulp.

For at least one more week, expect Saints fans to have their eyes on the pitch but their ears tuned to the radio.

Me? I'm an optimist. I'm a glass half full, Hibs needing to win two in a row means they probably won't, Mikael Mandron to score as we beat Hearts, kind of guy.

You can find Mark Jardine on the Misery Hunters podcast., external

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Ryan Strain hasn't heard his name read out in a starting line-up in a long old time.

On Saturday, when it was known he'd be starting against Motherwell, the 26-year-old couldn't wait for kick-off and admitted it was "amazing" just to be back out on the pitch.

The Australia international has been out with a groin injury since November, but was once again at Stephen Robinson's disposal.

"It's tough when you are injured but being back with the lads all day was great for me and I can't wait for the next match," he told St Mirren TV.

"It's been a long four months, but it was really good to get 45 minutes under my belt.

"I've come off a long injury so I have to get my fitness back and hopefully I can play longer next time out.

"You can run as much as you want in training, but match fitness is big so I can't wait to get more games under my belt and get back to it."

The next game for Strain and St Mirren is back in Paisley as they welcome Hearts in the final game before the split. The full-back scored the winner the last time the Jambos were in town and he wouldn't mind reliving such scenes with the fans again this weekend.

"I can't wait to play in front of the fans again," he added.

"They've been brilliant this year home and away so hopefully it'll be a big turn out again."

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St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson told BBC Scotland: "We're happy with a draw away from home. It's another point towards the ultimate goal of top six. You can't expect to turn up and get three points.

"The goal [we conceded] was disappointing. One long ball into the box and we watched the ball instead of marking men. That's the biggest disappointment, but we had good opportunities.

"We had a couple of half chances, but Motherwell are a decent side. Bair is a threat, Spittal is a good player, and they always have the ability to hurt you.

"The boys have been fantastic all season and we have to remember that. An away point against Motherwell is a really good result for us.

"I've always tapered everyone's ambitions. We're in total control of [whether we get top six]. We have a winnable game against Hearts at home and I've got nothing but praise for the boys."

What did you make of that St Mirren fans? A deserved point, or two dropped?

Who impressed you out there, and who didn't? Tell us your thoughts here.

Andrew Petrie, BBC Sport Scotland

Despite what some may tell you, this was a highly entertaining clash between two equally strong sides.

Both played with attacking intent, enjoyed spells of momentum and showed plenty of fight. What they lacked though, was accuracy in the final third.

St Mirren looked relatively solid, if a little undeserving of their initial lead. However, they showed confidence in the second half and should be frustrated not to leave with all three points.

The main conundrum for Stephen Robinson is still who plays in his midfield. To have Keanu Baccus and Kwon Hyeok-kyu on the bench shows the strength in depth, but who is his best pairing?

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Mark O'Hara. It's felt like a stop-start season for O'Hara but he's finally getting back to the form he showed last year, where he was one of the best player's in the Premiership outside the Old Firm.

Alongside Caolan Boyd-Munce, he dominated the middle of the park and gave St Mirren an anchor when they pressed up high.

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Motherwell: Kelly, O'Donnell, Casey, McGinn, Devine, Halliday, Zdravkovski, Gent, Spittal, Vale, Bair.

Substitutes: Oxborough, Mugabi, Shaw, Nicholson, Blaney, Moses, Miller, Ross, Butcher.

St Mirren: Hemming, Bolton, Gogic, Fraser, Strain, O'Hara, Boyd-Munce, Tanser, Kiltie, Mandron, Olusanya.

Substitutes: Urminsky, Dunne, Taylor, Bwomono, Baccus, Kwon, McMenamin, Scott, Ayunga.

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Former St Mirren winger Lewis Morgan, who is now playing in the MLS, still hopes for a Scotland recall - despite both of his caps coming under Alex McLeish in 2018 and not being part of the international scene for five years. (Football Scotland)

Read the rest of Saturday's gossip.

Barry Maguire, Adam Montgomery, Jon Obika, Harry Paton and Callum Slattery have missed recent Motherwell games.

St Mirren defender Ryan Strain has been recovering from groin surgery.

St Mirren will not allow "18 bad minutes" at Kilmarnock define their season, according to assistant manager Diarmuid O’Carroll.

Having led 2-0 at half time, the Saints conceded five in a stunning second half comeback from Derek McInnes' side in their final game before the international break.

O'Carroll insists "spirits are still really high" as the fifth-placed side target a top six finish, with just three games remaining before the split.

“It was a crazy, crazy second half but from our point of view 18 bad minutes doesn’t define our season,” O'Carroll said.

“It was a challenge for us for 18 minutes and we look back, assess it, look at the goals, how we can do things better.

“But I think these boys have earned the right to have a bad half or 20 minutes. They have been so consistent all season and even if it was a 2-2 or a 2-1 win, we would assess the goals accordingly, we would look at where we could improve and what we could do better in terms of game management but it is one of those that you put to bed.

“It was probably good that it was a couple of weeks ago but the boys have been fantastic all season and the spirits are still really high.”

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• Motherwell's Blair Spittal has been directly involved in nine goals in his last nine home appearances in the Scottish Premiership (five goals and four assists), with six of his seven league goals this season coming at Fir Park.

• St Mirren went unbeaten in their first four away league games of the season (W2 D2) but have lost eight of their 11 games on the road since (W2 D1), failing to score in six of those defeats.

• Motherwell have lost their last two home league games and could lose three in a row at Fir Park in the top-flight for the first time since November 2022; the Steelman have conceded the most home goals (26) and lost the joint-most home games (seven) in the competition this season.

• St Mirren have won two of their last four games against Motherwell in the league (drew one and lost one), as many victories as across their 13 matches prior (drew five and lost six); meanwhile the Buddies could keep three straight clean sheets against the Well in the top-flight for the first time since February 2007.

• Motherwell have lost just one of their last five home league meetings with St Mirren (W3 D1) though it did come earlier this season, losing 1-0 at Fir Park with Scott Tanser scoring the only goal of the game.

St Mirren return to action following the international break by visiting Motherwell on Saturday.

Who should Stephen Robinson include in his XI? Pick your team here.

Mark Jardine
Fan writer

In years gone by, international weekends were cause for Saints fans to switch off from football for a bit. A welcome break in most campaigns, in all honesty.

Not in 2024, not now. Today, 26 March, represents something of a Super Tuesday for Buddies and will have phones across Renfrewshire lighting up with the football scores app of their choice.

No fewer than four current St Mirren players may have added to (or started) their cap collection by the evening's end.

Keanu Baccus, a scorer of a goal in his last appearance for the Socceroos that none would have intended yet all would claim, unfortunately didn't feature for the Aussies against Lebanon on Tuesday morning.

However, Elvis Bwomono, St Mirren's right wing-back deputy in the place of Ryan Strain (who may well have added to this cohort if fit), should feature against Ghana for a Ugandan side reeling from a big defeat in Comoros last week.

Jonah Ayunga, as if recovering from a near full year on the sidelines with a serious knee injury this season wasn't enough, made his debut for Kenya as a late substitute on Saturday.

While the powerful frontman will be hoping for more than a few minutes when Kenya take on Zimbabwe, forcing himself into a front line which put four past Malawi at the weekend may be a tough task.

Finally, a couple of Saints will both be hoping for international recognition at the venue nearest their current Paisley home.

Conor McMenamin, having made his 12th international appearance in Romania on Friday, will fancy his chances of more time in Michael O'Neill's team. His cousin, playmaker Caolan Boyd-Munce, travelled on the same trip but was not called upon to take his international bow.

While a healthy Scotland victory is all I'll really be hoping for tonight, seeing a couple of Saints share the Hampden turf on international duty would be a source of significant pride too.

You can find Mark Jardine on the Misery Hunters podcast, external.

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There could be a couple of familiar faces for St Mirren fans when Northern Ireland face Scotland at Hampden on Tuesday.

Conor McMenamin will be looking to add to his 12 Northern Ireland caps, while Caolan Boyd-Munce could make his international debut for the visitors.

"My next step has to be to get my first cap," Boyd-Munce said earlier in the international break.

"I think this is my fourth call-up but it’s the first one where I have been in from the start. The others I’ve been on stand-by.

"I do feel ready for it. I feel comfortable with where I’m at. I’m understanding the game a lot more up here.

"I’d be getting booed left, right and centre [if I play against Scotland] and that would be from my team-mates watching! Under the lights at Hampden would be some experience."

We asked you whether St Mirren can still secure European football as we approach the final stretch of the season.

Here's a taste of what you had to say:

James: Top six is our first priority - I think! Although, playing the rest of the top six in the last five games would need better defending than at Rugby Park if we are to avoid being embarrassed. After the split there is no hiding place.

Alistair: We threw it away in 18 minutes last week in my opinion. We have a tougher run in and our results against those in the top six aren’t great. Killie will make fourth so it’ll be down to us and whoever makes it at sixth.

Dougie: This year has been a rollercoaster, a start to season only dreams were made of, to days of nightmares such as Rugby Park. I, like many fans have the blinkered eyes we should win every week. As a small club fan, we are one team and one town. I remember the 80s European games, I only hope by any miracles that come the way of Saints we get to do it again.

Rory: With players like Mandron leading the line, there’s no doubt that we will have trouble scoring any goals. However, the sooner players like Ryan Flynn and Charles “Chilli D” Dunne don’t play again, the better we will be holding onto those leads. We may need a Killie collapse to confirm fourth, though.

Anon: It has, so far, been a good season for the Saints and we undoubtedly have the quality within the squad to finish fourth. Although, I am not convinced in the striking department. Mandron doesn't do it for me, can't jump or run. I wish Grieve was back with his speed and work-rate.

Hughie: Prior to the Kilmarnock game I was confident about us securing top six status and possibly being in a position to challenge for a European place. Since Kilmarnock? I'm not so sure about either, to be honest.

We're firmly into the business end of the season.

St Mirren are on a mission to secure back-to-back top-six finishes and book a trip to Europe. We want to know how you're feeling heading into the final weeks of the campaign.

How confident are you that you'll be packing your suitcase in the summer? Who will be the key players in the fight for Europe? And what's your biggest concern that could trip the Buddies up?

Give us your thoughts.