PREVIEW | St. Mirren v Saints
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PREVIEW | St. Mirren v Saints

24th December 2018

Tuesday 25 December 2018

In the second of three games in under a week, Tommy Wright and his players head to Paisley to take on St. Mirren on Boxing Day in a 2PM kick-off.

Following Sunday's defeat the club currently sit in 8th place in the Ladbrokes Premiership table with tomorrow's opponents 16 points behind in 11th position.

Saints go into the match on the back of a 1-2 home loss to Rangers while St. Mirren managed an impressive victory on the road against Motherwell at Fir Park.

Looking ahead to the Boxing Day fixture, the manager said there were positives to take from the weekend's defeat but was expecting another tough game at the Simple Digital Arena.

"Although the result wasn't what we wanted I thought the performance was very good," Tommy said.

"I think we were unfortunate to lose the game and had plenty of opportunities ourselves in the match. We looked a threat going forward and I think we got the balance of defence and attack right throughout the game.

"Ultimately it's a defeat though and it was a tough one to take. Now we've got to dust ourselves off and go again in our final two games before the split.

"It's going to be a different type of game on Wednesday and indeed on Saturday because both St. Mirren and Dundee are fighting for their lives.

"I watched St. Mirren play against Motherwell and although it wasn't a pretty one to watch Oran won't mind because it's all about results when you're battling down the wrong end of the table. It'll be a tough game but if we can perform like we did on Sunday I'm confident we can get the result."

Training will be light over the next few days as the manager and his staff focus on rest and recovery due to the hectic fixture schedule.

Tommy also says he expects to make changes over the next two games to ensure his side remain fresh in the final run before the winter break.

"The players absolutely love it at this time of year," he said.

"They want to play as many games as possible but they do need to show discipline and look after themselves. They have to watch what they eat and drink which isn't easy at this time of year with friends and family indulging over Christmas.

"All of my players are tremendous professionals though so we have no worries. We'll make sure they are all well looked after and training will be light over the next week.

"We'll do video work and walk through a few things on the training pitch but we want the players to rest up and make sure they are physically prepared for the next two games."

He added: "I expect to make a few changes for the St. Mirren game and possibly the same again for Dundee. Ultimately I want to pick the team I think has the best chance of winning and putting in a performance on each day.

"We've got a big squad and - with the exception of our long-term absentees - I've got a full selection to choose from."


Saints fans are reminded that tomorrow's match is a 2PM kick-off at the Simple Digital Arena.

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