Saints are on their travels on Saturday as Jim Goodwin's side head to The Tony Macaroni Arena to take on Livingston.

FORM

The Buddies currently sit in 8th place in the Ladbrokes Premiership having picked up three points from our opening three matches.

A narrow 1-0 loss away to Hibernian on the opening day was followed up by a deserved 1-0 win over Aberdeen at the Simple Digital Arena.

Ilkay Durmus' early goal sealed the three points and capped off a strong performance for Jim Goodwin's men against the Dons.

Saints were edged out 1-0 at home by Rangers last weekend with Borna Barisic's second-half free-kick the difference between the two sides.

Livingston are off to an unbeaten start this season having qualified from their Betfred Cup group with three wins and a draw. They began their league season with a 0-0 draw at home to Motherwell, before drawing 2-2 away to St Johnstone. 

They come into tomorrow's match on the back of a mightily impressive 4-1 win away to Ross County last weekend.

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The two sides came up against each other four times last season with both teams winning two games apiece. 

Livingston were victorious in the first two clashes last season - winning 2-0 at the Simple Digital Arena in August, before winning 3-1 at the Tony Macaroni Arena in December.

A last-gasp goal from Ryan Flynn gave Saints all three points when Livingston came in Paisley on a rainy February day.

The final meeting between the two sides was in April in the first match of the Ladbrokes Premiership split last season. Livingston were reduced to 10 men but took the lead through Scott Robinson. Saints rallied, however, and equalised quickly when Paul McGinn scored. Late goals from Danny Mullen and Simeon Jackson gave the Buddies a vital 3-1 win. 

TEAM NEWS

Cody Cooke remains sidelined with a long-term injury, but everyone else is available for selection for Saints.

MANAGER'S THOUGHTS

"Livingston are very well-organised. They are a hard-working team and very physical at times. 

"They are a better team than most people give them credit for. We know that they have players in their team that can hurt you.

"The players have shown they are willing to dig in and fight & scrap for every ball.

"The easy part of football is setting a team up to be hard to beat. The hard part as a manager is to try and impose your own game on the opposition and that's what we have to try and do tomorrow."

The Buddies are back on Sunday as we host Rangers at the Simple Digital Arena in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

FORM

Saints go into Sunday's match on the back of a 1-0 win over Aberdeen in Paisley almost two weeks ago.

Ilkay Durmus' early goal sealed the three points and capped off a good performance for Jim Goodwin's men. It was the Buddies' first league win over Aberdeen since 2011. 

It means Saints have picked up three points from our opening two matches having narrowly lost to Hibernian at Easter Road on the opening day. 

Rangers come into the game following a 0-0 draw away to Polish side Legia Warsaw in the Europa League.

Gers have beaten St Joseph's of Gibraltar, Progres of Luxembourg and Danish side Midtylland so far this season to reach the play-off round of the Europa League.

Steven Gerrard's side have also won their opening two league matches - beating Kilmarnock 2-1 at Rugby Park thanks to an injury time goal from Connor Goldson, while they also defeated Hibernian 6-1 at Ibrox. 

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The Buddies came up against Steven Gerrard's Rangers side three times last season, but came up empty handed. 

The last meeting was at Ibrox in February when Rangers were, astonishingly, awarded four penalties on their way to winning 4-0. 

Rangers won on their only trip to Paisley last season with late goals from Daniel Candieas and Alfredo Morelos stealing the points in a 2-0 win. 

Saints' last win against the Ibrox side came on Christmas Eve 2011 when goals from Paul McGowan and Aaron Mooy just before half-time secured a 2-1 win in Paisley.

TEAM NEWS

Junior Morias could make his Saints debut tomorrow after signing a two-year deal to join the club from Northampton Town.

Everyone else is available bar Cody Cooke who remains sidelined with a long-term injury.

The 2019/20 Ladbrokes Premiership season gets underway tomorrow afternoon with St Mirren heading through to the capital to face Hibernian. 

FORM

The Buddies come into tomorrow's match on the back of a disappointed Betfred Cup campaign. 

Saints were beaten 3-2 by Dunfermline Athletic in their opening Betfred Cup match, but defeated Edinburgh City 1-0 thanks to Oan Djorkaeff's late penalty kick. That was followed up with 0-0 draws away to East Kilbride and Albion Rovers which saw the Buddies finish third in Group H on six points. 

Hibernian topped their group after winning three of their four matches. Paul Heckingbottom's side opened the group with a 1-1 draw away to League Two side Stirling Albion. The quickly brushed off that result with wins over Alloa (2-0), Arbroath (3-0) and Elgin City (2-0) to finish top of their group and secure a last 16 tie with Morton. 

St Mirren preserved their Premiership status last season with a dramatic play-off final penalty shoot-out win against Dundee United. The Buddies ended the season with just one loss from their final 10 matches.

After a difficult few months for Hibs, Neil Lennon left the Easter Road side as manager to be replaced by Heckingbottom. The Hibees' form picked up and saw an eventual fifth place finish.

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Saints are unbeaten on our last two trips to Easter Road.

Adam Hammill and Paul McGinn scored as we drew 2-2 on our only trip to Hibs last season, while there was the final day 1-1 draw in the 2016/17 season that saw Saints preserve their Ladbrokes Championship status.

The Buddies have come up against the Hibees once in 2019. Simeon Jackson opened the scoring for Saints, but goals from Oli Shaw and ex-Saints Darren McGregor & Stevie Mallan gave the Leith side a 3-1 win.

Saints' last win at Easter Road came in a 2016 IRN-BRU Cup tie. The Buddies came from behind to knock Hibs out of the Challenge Cup thanks to goals from Stevie Mallan and David Clarkson.

Our last league win away to Hibs was in January 2014 when a Ben Williams own-goal and strikes from Adam Campbell & Steven Thompson gave us a 3-2 win in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

TEAM NEWS

Saints were dealt a blow with the news that Cody Cooke looks set to be out for up to 6-9 months after picking up a knee injury. Jim Kellermann will also miss out with a shoulder injury.

Gary MacKenzie could return for Saints after missing our Betfred Cup matches against East Kilbride and Albion Rovers. 

International clearance has been received for Ilkay Durmus, Sam Foley, Sean McLoughlin and Jonathan Obika so all four new signings could make their debuts tomorrow.

St Mirren travel to Coatbridge tonight to take on Albion Rovers in our final Betfred Cup group stage match.

FORM

Saints go into tonight's game on four points having won one, drawn one and lost one of our first three Betfred Cup matches.

The Buddies bounced back from a 3-2 loss at home to Dunfermline to beat Edinburgh City 1-0 at the Simple Digital Arena last Wednesday night.

Oan Djorkaeff's late penalty on his first St Mirren start got Jim Goodwin his first win as Saints manager.

Saints were then held to a frustrating 0-0 draw away to Lowland League side East Kilbride. Following the 90 minutes, East Kilbride picked up the bonus point after winning 6-5 on penalties.

Albion have taken three points from their opening two Betfred Cup matches. They edged out East Kilbride 1-0 at K-Park on match day one thanks to ex-Saint Jordan Stewart's 25th minute goal, but fell to a 6-0 loss away to Dunfermline last week. 

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The Buddies last faced Albion Rovers in a Challenge Cup tie at Cliftonhill in September 2016.

Saints looked like they were heading for a shock defeat when Albion raced into a 2-0 lead with just 13 minutes played. But three goals in eight minutes from Lewis Morgan, Stephen Mallan and John Sutton put the Buddies in the lead.

Rovers would equalise just two minutes after Sutton had made it 3-2 and the game went to extra-time. Lawrence Shankland's 98th minute header was enough to see St Mirren into the next round with the Buddies reaching the final of the competition that season.

Saints are unbeaten in their last 11 matches against Albion Rovers stretching back to 1971. Since a 2-1 win for Rovers in September 1971, Saints have won 10 and drawn one of those meetings.

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

Only a win would keep up Saints' feint hopes of qualification alive. The Buddies must pick up three points that would see them end the group on seven points. No club has qualified for the next round on seven points since the introduction of the groups let alone won a group with that total. 

However, it could be enough to win group H. For that to happen Dunfermline would have to lose to East Kilbride in their final match, while Edinburgh City would also have lose against Albion Rovers in one of their remaining two matches as two East Kilbride wins would see the Lowland League side top the group on eight points. Are you still with us?

Below is the only set of outcomes from the final four matches that would see St Mirren top the group:

Albion Rovers v St Mirren - St Mirren win
Edinburgh City v East Kilbride - Edinburgh City win
Dunfermline v East Kilbride - East Kilbride win
Albion Rovers v Edinburgh City - Albion Rovers win 

Those results would see Saints top the group on seven points, while Albion, Dunfermline and Edinburgh would end up with six points and East Kilbride with five. It's complicated!

TEAM NEWS

Gary MacKenzie could miss tonight's match after sitting out Saturday's draw with East Kilbride.

St Mirren are back in action at the Simple Digital Arena this evening as we play host to Edinburgh City in matchday two of the Betfred Cup.

FORM

Saints will be looking to bounce back from the disappointment of defeat to Dunfermline in Paisley on Sunday and aim to get our first points on the board in Group H.

The Buddies, who fell 3-0 behind at half-time against the Pars, looked like the might launch an improbable comeback when strikers Cody Cooke and Danny Mullen netted inside the space of two minutes to make it 3-2. But with 25 minutes to go Jim Goodwin's side couldn't find an equaliser that would have taken the match to penalties.

Tonight is Edinburgh City's first match in the Betfred Cup this season after being the side that missed out on the first round of fixtures at the weekend.

Managed by James McDonagh, former Falkirk assistant manager, Edinburgh City come into tonight's match on the back of pre-season wins over Gala Fairydean (3-0), St Johnstone (2-0) and East Kilbride (5-2). 

McDonagh's side challenged for the League Two title last season but fell away towards the final few matches and finished in third between champions Peterhead and Clyde. They faced the latter in the promotion play-offs but lost 4-0 to Danny Lennon's Clyde.

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Saints have faced Edinburgh City once before in the Betfred Cup group stages.

The Buddies defeated the Citizens 3-0 at the Simple Digital Arena in July 2016 thanks to first-half goals from Lawrence Shankland, Tom Walsh and Jack Baird.

Despite that win and finishing on nine points in the group, it wasn't enough for Saints to progress to the next round.

There have been four meetings between the sides over the last 84 years since they first met in old second division in 1935. City won 3-2 in the first meeting, but Saints have came out in top in the remaining three since then. A 5-0 win in 1936 was followed up by a 3-1 win in the Scottish Cup in 1939, before the 2016 Betfred Cup group stage match.

ONES TO WATCH

The Buddies backline will have to keep their eye on City's Blair Henderson. The striker hit 40 goals for the Citizens last season - 30 of those coming in League Two to see him finish top scorer by a country mile. His goalscoring exploits saw him named as League Two Player of the Year and win the SPFL 'Tartan Boot'.

Another key player for City is captain Josh Walker. Walker is probably better remembered to Scottish football fans for a loan spell at Aberdeen over 10 years ago where he scored in their famous 2-2 draw against Bayern Munich in the then UEFA Cup.

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

Saints will be looking to win their remaining three group stage matches in the hope that nine points will be enough to progress to the next round.

Edinburgh City will be looking to shock the Buddies and get their opening Betfred Cup match off to a winning start. 

TEAM NEWS

Both Tony Andreu and Oan Djorkaeff made their Saints debuts in Sunday's match against Dunfermline. The latter's came from off the bench and he could be in line to make first St Mirren start this evening. 

The squad of 18 is likely to be the same as Sunday's match with no fresh injury concerns. 

It's the first leg of the Ladbrokes Premiership Play-Off Final tonight as St Mirren take on Dundee United at Tannadice.

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Dundee United - WWLWWW

St Mirren are unbeaten in our last six matches heading into the play-offs. 

Three wins and three draws weren't enough to avoid 11th in the league, but gives us a bit of momentum heading into tonight's match.

The Buddies have won the last two matches - a 2-0 win at home to Hamilton last week was followed up by 3-2 win over Dundee on Saturday at Dens Park.

Dundee United won both their matches against Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Play-Off Semi-Final to set up tonight's match. Ex-Saint Paul McMullan scored the game's only goal in Inverness last Tuesday. United sealed their place in the final on Friday night when they defeated Inverness 3-0 at Tannadice.

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This will be the second meeting between the two sides this season after having come up against each other in the Scottish Cup in February. 

United ran out 2-1 winners at the Simple Digital Arena with goals first-half goals from Pavol Safranko and Nicky Clark putting the Tangerines in control. Duckens Nazon pulled a goal back for Saints after Calum Butcher was sent off for a poor challenge on Ryan Flynn but the Buddies couldn't find a leveller and were knocked out. 

The Tangerines won the last match between the two at Tannadice last April. Billy King's third minute goal was enough to give United a 1-0 win.

A Lewis Morgan double gave Saints our last win over United. The Buddies defeated the Arabs 2-0 at the Simple Digital Arena in December 2017.

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

Quite simply, the advantage heading into the second leg on Sunday. 

TEAM NEWS

Anders Dreyer and Greg Tansey remain out for Saints, while the manager told the press that Simeon Jackson is still struggling after coming off last week against Hamilton.

Calum Butcher is United's only injury concern ahead of tonight's match.

WHAT THE GAFFER SAYS

"United are a good side. They put us out of the Scottish Cup earlier in the season and they have a huge amount to play for.

"We've come an awful long way since that day in the cup. We're a different animal now, that's fair to say.

"The last few months has seen a real upsurge in performances and more importantly the number of points we accumulated. It's easy to say we're in our best form of the season.

"It's been a heck of a season and now we want to top it off by staying in the league."

St Mirren travel to Dundee for matchday 38 of the Ladbrokes Premiership.

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Dundee - WLLLLL

Saints come into tomorrow's game on the back of a 2-0 win over Hamilton Academical on Monday night which made it five matches without defeat for the Buddies.

Two wins and three draws have given Oran Kearney's side the chance of clinching survival on the final day of the season. 

Dundee arrested a slide of 10 defeats in a row when they beat Livingston 1-0 at the Tony Macaroni Arena last Saturday with veteran striker Kenny Miller scoring the game's only goal.

Despite the win, Dens boss Jim McIntyre was sacked on Sunday afternoon with James McPake taking over as caretaker for tomorrow's match. 

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Saints have managed to get the better of Dundee on two of the three matches we have faced the side this season.

The Buddies opened the season by hosting Dundee at the Simple Digital Arena on match day one. A Danny Mullen double either side of an Elton Ngwatala goal got Saints an opening day three points.

Jim McIntyre had replaced Neil McCann as manager of the Dark Blues when we visited in November. Simeon Jackson scored from the penalty spot to give Saints the lead, but the home side grabbed a point through Kenny Miller.

The final meeting of the two came at the end of March when Dundee visited the Simple Digital Arena for the final time this season. It was the away side who got off to a flyer with Ethan Robson giving them the lead with just 23 seconds played. But Saints grabbed a quickfire leveller through Mullen with Brad Lyons nodding home the winner on 57 minutes.

Dundee's last win over Saints came in January 2015 when goals from Gary Irvine and Iain Davidson cancelled out Kenny McLean's opener.  

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

Come full time tomorrow Saints will know whether they have secured Premiership football for next season or whether they will face a play-off.

It's out of the Buddies hands but a win or a draw could keep us up.  By the same token a win or a draw may not be enough depending on Hamilton's result at home to St Johnstone. 

If Hamilton beat St Johnstone the Buddies will face a relegation play-off, regardless of our result tomorrow. If Hamilton draw with the Perth Saints then Oran Kearney's side must defeat Dundee to finish in 10th. If Hamilton lose then either a draw or a win will secure survival for Saints.

TEAM NEWS

Anders Dreyer and Greg Tansey remain out for Saints. 

The manager also told the press yesterday that Simeon Jackson is a doubt after coming off against Hamilton on Monday night. 

WHAT THE GAFFER SAYS

"We find ourselves in territory that I don't think anyone expected we could get to.

"There was a stage a few months ago we were eight or nine points behind Hamilton and maybe five or six behind Dundee at one point as well.

"To have had the swing of points that we have had and the momentum and push that we have made we are there on merit.

"We've been chasing the whole time and the chase is still on for us and it's one last chase on Saturday."

St Mirren play host to Hamilton Academical in our last regular home league match of the 2018/19 season tonight.

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St Mirren - DDWDLW

Hamilton - WDDDLL

Saints come into tonight's game having lost just one of our last six league matches. 

The Buddies, who have to win tonight to have a chance of avoiding the play-offs, have won two of those six matches - a 2-1 win at home to Dundee and a 3-1 win over Livingston at the Tony Macaroni Arena. 

We are unbeaten in our last four matches with draws against Motherwell (1-1) and St Johnstone (1-1) coming after our win away to Livingston, while we drew 1-1 with Hamilton just before the league split. 

Like Saints, Hamilton are unbeaten in their last four matches having also won one and drawn three.

Accies defeated Dundee 1-0 in their last match to relegate the Dens Park side and move four points ahead of the Buddies. They've also drawn with Livingston (3-3), Motherwell (1-1) and Saints (1-1). Their last defeat came away to Livingston at the start of April when they lost 2-0 at the Tony Macaroni Arena.

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Saints have yet to beat Hamilton in three attempts this season.

The Buddies lost 3-0 away to Accies in September, before suffering a 3-1 defeat in Paisley in December.

Oran Kearney's men picked up a point in our last match against the Lanarkshire side. Brian Rice's outfit took the lead at the Hope CBD Stadium through Steve Davies, but the Buddies bounced back to grab a point thanks to Anders Dreyer's penalty a few minutes later. 

Our last win against Hamilton came at the Simple Digital Arena in February 2015 when Steven Thompson's second half goal gave us a 1-0 victory.

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

The Buddies come into tonight's match knowing that only a win will be enough to keep us in the hunt for 10th spot.

Anything but a win will consign Saints to 11th place and the relegation play-off spot.

Hamilton know that a draw or better will see them secure Premiership safety for another season.

TEAM NEWS

Anders Dreyer, Cammy MacPherson and Greg Tansey are all out for Saints.

WHAT THE GAFFER SAYS

"The last five or six games have been really encouraging and we've built up a head of momentum at the right time.

"We were written off by many throughout the season and to have secured at least a play-off is a heck of an achievement from where we have been. But mathematically there is still a huge incentive for us to try and stay up outright.  

"There is a real feel-good factor about the place and a real air of positivity and that's what we want to tap into. 

"It's so important that the crowd gets behind us. I'm not asking for that because I know they will do that anyway - they've been absolutely top-notch." 

St Mirren travel to Lanarkshire tomorrow to take on Motherwell in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

FORM

St Mirren - DWDLWL

Motherwell - WDLLWL

The Buddies are unbeaten in their last three matches having won once and drawn twice. 

That run began with a 1-1 draw away to Hamilton Accies at the Hope CBD Stadium last month before the Buddies won their first match of the split defeating Livingston 3-1 away.

Oran Kearney's men come into tomorrow's match on the back of a 1-1 draw with St Johnstone at the Simple Digital Arena last week. Chris Kane's late goal looked to have won it for the visitors, but Danny Mullen netted his sixth goal of the season with a sensational volley from the edge of the box on 90 minutes to grab Saints a point.

Like Saints, Motherwell have picked up four points from their opening two split matches. The first saw Stephen Robinson's side draw 1-1 away to Hamilton, before a dramatic 4-3 win against Dundee at Fir Park last weekend.

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Saints were victorious in their only trip to Fir Park so far this season.

The Buddies previously made the trip to Motherwell in December with Simeon Jackson's 68th minute goal giving Saints a 1-0 win three days before Christmas.

Motherwell have won the other two matches against Saints this season. The Steelmen have left Paisley with the three points on both occasions - a 2-0 win on Halloween, followed by a 2-1 win in February.

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

St Mirren could potentially move into 10th spot if they gather all three points tomorrow.

The Buddies would have to win and hope that Hamilton fail to defeat Dundee away to move into 10th. 

A win would also ensure that Saints can't finish bottom of the Ladbrokes Premiership regardless of what happens in the Dundee-Hamilton match.

Meanwhile, Motherwell are still in the hunt for a 7th place finish and sit just a point behind St Johnstone who currently occupy that spot.

TEAM NEWS

Oran Kearney confirmed to press yesterday that Anders Dreyer has been sent back to parent club Brighton after picking up an injury that is likely to rule him out for the season. Cammy MacPherson is also ruled out due to an ankle problem while long-term absentee Greg Tansey remains out.

Alex Rodriguez Gorrín is out for the home side after his red card against Dundee last week. Liam Donnelly is also a doubt for the Steelmen.

WHAT THE GAFFER SAYS

"We beat them in December time but probably both teams since then have vastly changed.

"They've had a cracking season since January onwards and have probably been one of the form teams in the league.

"We've got to keep going. The buzz has been good in training and there's a good feel about it at the minute. But we are fully aware of the magnitude of each of the games."

St Mirren play host to St Johnstone in our final Saturday home match of the season.

FORM

St Mirren - WDLWLL

St Johnstone - WLWLWL

The Buddies come into tomorrow's match on the back of an impressive 3-1 win away to Livingston at the Tony Macaroni Arena last weekend.

Despite Craig Halkett being sent off, the hosts took the lead through Scott Robinson. 

But Paul McGinn got Saints level soon after, before late goals from Danny Mullen and Simeon Jackson gave Oran Kearney's men the win.

St Mirren have only lost once since our last meeting with St Johnstone. That was a 2-0 loss to Celtic, while there have been wins over Dundee & Livingston and a draw away to Hamilton.

St Johnstone have won three and lost three of their previous six league matches. They come into tomorrow's match following a 2-0 win over Dundee at McDiarmid Park last Saturday.

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St Johnstone have won all three encounters between the two sides this season. 

The Buddies travelled to Perth for the first meeting back in October. Despite missing two penalties, St Johnstone still ran out 2-0 winners with second-half goals from David Wotherspoon and Matty Kennedy giving Tommy Wright's men the three points.

St Mirren welcomed St Johnstone to the Simple Digital Arena on Boxing Day 2018. The visitors again came away with the points after a last-gasp winner from Tony Watt. 

The Paisley Saints missed a penalty on our trip to McDiarmid Park last month as St Johnstone edged us out 1-0. Simeon Jackson had an early spot-kick saved by Zander Clark before a defensive mix-up allowed Chris Kane to net the game's only goal.

The Buddies last defeated St Johnstone in 2014 when goals from Jason Naismith and Adam Drury gave us a 2-1 win at McDiarmid Park.

Our last win over St Johnstone in Paisley was in October 2013 where we defeated the Perth Saints 4-3. 

WHAT A WIN WOULD MEAN

St Mirren could potentially move into 10th spot if they gather all three points tomorrow.

The Buddies would have to win and hope that Hamilton fail to defeat Livingston at home to climb above Brian Rice's side. 

St Johnstone currently occupy seventh spot and will be keen on three points to keep themselves ahead of eighth placed Motherwell who are just three points behind.

TEAM NEWS

Oran Kearney confirmed that Greg Tansey is out for the season, but the midfielder is the only absence for the Buddies.

Duckens Nazon could come back into the squad after serving his two-match suspension. 

WHAT THE GAFFER SAYS

"There's a good feel about the place. But there's a realisation of where we are at and we are under no illusions of what is still needed.

"St Johnstone are a good side and we've had three tough battles with them over the season and we are yet to come away with any points from it. That should show us how tough a task it's going to be on Saturday. 

"We've always set our sights on the position above us and it is still within touching distance. While it is still mathematically possible we've got to keep pushing as hard as we can.

"The fans can't underestimate how big a role they play. When the chips are down and things aren't going well to have that encouragement from the sidelines is so important and it is absolutely something we need over the last four games."