St Mirren return to the Paisley 2021 Stadium for the first time in four weeks this Saturday as they take on Queen of the South in the Scottish Championship.
Saint's come into this game off the back of a valuable victory over Dunfermline last week at East End park, with goals from Cammy Smith and Jack Baird enough to secure the three points which extended St Mirren's lead at the top of the Championship table. In conjunction with Dundee Utd's 3-0 loss to Morton on Saturday, Saints now sit 11 points ahead of the Tayside club.
The last time these two clubs faced off was two days before Christmas at Palmerston Park, where St Mirren came from behind to win 3-2 in a festive thriller. After going down 1-0 just 20 seconds in to the game, thanks to a goal from Stephen Dobbie, The Doonhamers doubled their lead on the sixth minute with Chris Kane running in behind the Saints' defence and cooly slotting past Craig Samson. The Buddies did drag themselves back into the game, after Gavin Reilly capitalized on a mix up between Queens' defence and goalkeeper and headed the ball into the empty net. The comeback was complete on the 35 minute mark when Cammy Smith placed the ball inside the goalkeepers near post. The winner came on the 68th minute when Gary MacKenzie - known more for his aerial prowess - managed to get his foot on the end of a corner to cushion the ball into the bottom corner.
The first game between the two sides this season took place at the Paisley 2021 Stadium, with The Buddies running out 3-1 winners after the opener from Cammy Smith and a brace from Lewis Morgan.
Queens started the season well, winning three out of their first four games, but have struggled to find that same consistency in the last couple of months. However, they still remain in fifth place with only goal difference between them and a playoff spot. Saint's defence will be put to the test, as the visitors bring the league's top goalscorer in Stephen Dobbie to town. The Doonhamer's talisman has been in fine form all season; scoring a hat-trick last week against Brechin which moved the striker's total up to 14 league goals for the season.
As the January transfer window closed on Wednesday evening, The Buddies added one more to their ranks with the singing of Myles Hippolyte from Falkirk on Deadline Day. Unfortunately, this weekend's game will come a bit too soon for the former Bairn and is unlikely to feature after recently returning from a quad injury.
St Mirren could extend their unbeaten league run to nine games tomorrow, and with the four teams directly below Saints all playing away tomorrow, this could be a chance to widen the gap at the top as The Buddies push for promotion.
