A win today for Hamilton will take them above their hosts if they end a run of seven games without a win and Hamilton manager Brian Rice tells BBC Scotland: "Some people look at these games and say they define our season. I don't believe that for a minute. I think every game defines your season.

"We've got to go into games full of confidence. If you're not confident in yourself or your team-mate playing next to you, you've got a problem. They need to believe a bit more and, once we get that win, who knows."

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St Mirren, one of four teams on 11 points, are only above the Premiership's bottom two on goal difference and manager Jim Goodwin predicts the relegation battle will be too close for comfort.

"I think it's going to continue to be very competitive right to the end," he tells Sportsound. "We have slightly underachieved. I believe we could have another five or six points on the board considering how tight some of our games have been.

"We don't fear coming here. We know Aberdeen are a decent side. They are very physical and rely heavily on set-plays, so we need to man up and be as aggressive as we can."

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Livingston manager Gary Holt makes one change to the side that suffered a 4-0 defeat at Celtic Park last Saturday, with midfielder Keaghan Jacobs coming in for Jack McMillan.

As for Hamilton, Sam Stubbs returns from suspension to replace Jamie Hamilton in the centre of defence and George Oakley comes in for Steve Davies at the top end of the pitch.

Luke Southwood, the 21-year-old goalkeeper on loan from Reading who made his debut against Rangers last week, keeps his place.

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It's a case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" for Hibs, who field the same starting line-up for the fourth game in a row.

Flo Kamberi came off with a back complaint in the midweek win over St Mirren but is fit enough to lead the line alongside Christian Doidge.

There's a solitary change in the Kilmarnock XI, Eamonn Brophy missing out due to food poisoning, with fit-again Osman Sow taking his place up front.

That's a bit of a blow for boss Angelo Alessio, since Brophy has scored four goals in his past four league games against Hibs.

Stephen O'Donnell has overcome an injury to start in defence.

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Defender Zak Vyner returns from a shoulder injury for Aberdeen and is joined in the starting line-up by fellow loan player Jon Gallagher and 18-year-old Dean Campbell in midfield.

Dropping to the bench from last Sunday's 1-1 draw at St Johnstone are right-back Shay Logan, centre-half Mikey Devlin and striker Curtis Main.

St Mirren make one change from the 2-1 home defeat to Hibernian in midweek, with Tony Andreu taking the place of Ilkay Durmus in an attacking midfield role.

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Motherwell forward James Scott missed much of their preparation for the visit of St Johnstone through illness but has been named on the bench.

Manager Stephen Robinson makes one change from the 3-1 defeat by Hibs; Liam Donnelly replacing Barry Maguire.

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St Johnstone are without suspended midfielder Murray Davidson and forward Callum Hendry, who were sent off in last weekend's 1-1 draw with Aberdeen.

Winger Drey Wright also drops out from the starting line-up in that game, with striker Chris Kane and midfielder David Wotherspoon coming in.

Hearts staff and fans will have one nervous eye on today's games as they prepare to face Rangers tomorrow.

If St Mirren, Hamilton Academical and St Johnstone all pick up at least a point, the side presently under caretaker Austin MacPhee will head to Ibrox bottom of the Premiership.

St Mirren have potentially the toughest task as they visit an Aberdeen side who will fancy their chances of narrowing the gap on the top two to six points with Europa League duo Celtic and Rangers inactive until tomorrow.

Bottom side St Johnstone will also have to overcome the form book as they travel to face a Motherwell side sitting three points behind Aberdeen in fourth.

Accies are also away, with hosts Livingston looking to protect and extend their two-point advantage over the bottom four.

Meanwhile, it's sixth hosting fifth at Easter Road, where hosts Hibernian can leapfrog Kilmarnock, who are a point behind Motherwell, if they win by two or more goals.

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Livingston: Sarkic, Taylor-Sinclair, Lamie, Guthrie, Jacobs, Bartley, Crawford, Pittman, Lawson, Lawless, Dykes

Substitutes: Stewart, Sibbald, Robinson, Souda, Odoffin, Erskine, McMillan

Hamilton Academical: Southwood, McGowan, Stubbs, Hunt, Easton, Miller, Gogic, Smith, McMann, Oakley, Ogkmpoe

Substitutes: Fon Williams, Collar, Cunningham, Moyo, Want, Martin, Hamilton

Motherwell: Gillespie, Hartley, Gallagher, Grimshaw, Carroll, Donnelly, Campbell, Polworth, Hylton, Long, Cole

Substitutes: Carson, Tait, Seedorf, Manzinga, Scott, Mugabi, O'Hara

St Johnstone: Clark, Ralston, Tanser, Duffy, Kerr, Kennedy, Wotherspoon, McCann, Holt, Kane, May

Substitutes: Parish, Wright, Craig, Swanson, O'Halloran, Booth, Vihmann

Aberdeen: Lewis, Vyner, Considine, McKenna, Leigh, Ferguson, Campbell, Gallagher, McGinn, Hedges, Cosgrove.

Substitutes: Cerny, Logan, Devlin, McLennan, Wilson, Anderson, Main.

St Mirren: Hladky, P McGinn, MacKenzie, McLoughlin, Waters, S McGinn, Flynn, Foley, Magennis, Andreu, Obika.

Substitutes: Lyness, MacPherson, Durmus, K McAllister, Mullen, Cooke, Morais.

Hibernian: Maxwell, Naismith, Porteous, Hanlon, Stevenson, Hallberg, Slivka, Allan, Newell, Kamberi, Doidge.

Substitutes: Marciano, Jackson, James, Mallan, Horgan, Boyle, Shaw.

Kilmarnock: Branescu, O'Donnell, Del Fabrio, Bruce, Hamalainen, Dicker, Power, El Makrini, Burke, McKenzie, Sow.

Substitutes: Koprivec, Hendrie, Johnson, Wilson, Thomas, Miller, Jackson.

Scottish Championship

Ayr United v Arbroath

Greenock Morton v Dundee United

Scottish League Two

Albion Rovers v Cowdenbeath

Coverage of today's games is starting on BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound.

Among Richard Gordon's guests are former Scotland internationals Neil McCann, Michael Stewart and Willie Miller, plus former Motherwell centre-half Stephen Craigan.

The frequencies split at 14:55, with Rob Maclean providing live commentary from Easter Road on 810MW as Hibs host Kilmarnock, while all the other games are on Open All Mics.

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Scottish football's big two, Celtic and Rangers were hot stuff on Thursday, but the big freeze has descended on Saturday's fixtures, with three games - in Ayr, Coatbridge and Greenock - called off this morning.

However, the four scheduled Premiership games go ahead thanks to the top-flight's requirement for undersoil heating.

Stay with us for the build-up, live commentary and post-match reaction from those and the surviving fixtures in the three lower divisions.

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