Voice of St Mirren fans: ‘Faith restored’

The Scots have a particular tendency to revel in glorious failure, although I wouldn’t call Sunday’s defeat at Ibrox glorious or write it off as a failure.

A lack of points for Paisley, no matter the opponents, is always going to be disappointing – it’s to the credit of Stephen Robinson’s Saints performance at the weekend that the disappointment of leaving Ibrox is somewhat justified.

Humiliating defeats to Dundee United and Hearts in the last fortnight have left the Northern Irishman with a bit of fire and fury. Promises were made to get back to basics and demand minimum standards when it comes to effort, passion and sustainability.

Although the score was 2-1 in Rangers’ favor by the end of the match, the Saints manager and most of the other mates present were encouraged by the response to this demand.

Returning to the back five that the line-up was originally designed for, Robinson also has the opportunity to field Greg Kielty and Conor McMenamin for the first time since last season. Talismanic figures in their integrity and effort, especially in the case of Kilty, their return coinciding with increased levels of performance should come as no surprise.

On another Sunday, if you will allow me the cliché, things could have ended very differently. Toyosi Olusanya will look back at his first-half one-on-one that went wide, or his potential penalty that was rejected later in the day, and wonder, “What if?”

McMenamin, understandably rusty after five months on the sidelines, will likely view his late left-footed shot over the crossbar as the perfect opportunity to announce his return.

The Saints defensive line, usually strong on a day of regular effort and testing, can be both proud of their efforts and wondering if they might have hampered the ability of both Rangers to reach their men in the Buddies box.

Most importantly, in this seven-day, three-game whirlwind, the Saints can now welcome St Johnstone and Ross County to SMISA Stadium with some faith restored.

After 180 minutes of the same urgency, determination and aggressive pressing, the Premier League table could look very different again thanks to the black and white tinted glasses.

Mark Jardine can be found in Misery Hunters., external