Pessimism hits new peak as Saints look play-off bound

[BBC]

Two weeks ago I wrote I'd quite happily pack in the season now, take the 10th-place finish and start again in July.

Sadly though - and very selfishly - Neil McCann and Kilmarnock have taken that away from us as we stare down the barrel of that relegation play-off spot.

St Mirren fans have never been known as an optimistic bunch, even when things are going well. But after Saturday's dismal, dismal performance, it's fair to say pessimism in Paisley has reached yet another new peak.

Against Kilmarnock, the Buddies fired a blank for the fourth straight time in the league and the 17th in 36 Premiership games.

This season Saints have scored just 10 at home in 18 games - just one fewer goal than we managed in three games at Hampden. No one ever said football made sense.

So, can Craig McLeish's men avoid the Partick Thistle or Dunfermline-shaped boulder hurtling towards them? Mathematically, yes. Realistically? Based on the last couple of performances, it's hard to see that happening.

Kilmarnock of course deserve credit here, having completed a 10 -point turnaround on St Mirren since 4 February, and they now sit just one win from completing the job. But from a Paisley perspective, it's hard not to focus on us holding up our end of the bargain.

In any relegation escape it takes two to tango, and when you pick up just seven points in an 11-game spell (and lose to the team below you twice) you're really asking for trouble.

As such, the worst St Mirren season in seven years looks set to be extended by another week.

Yet despite how little l've enjoyed the last 270 minutes of football, I'll still be heading up north for tonight's clash with Aberdeen, hoping to at least keep things interesting going into the final day.

If not? Well, we start planning for a midweek trip to Fife or Maryhill and a final shot at redeeming a deeply disappointing season in Renfrewshire.

So many things have transpired against us, including injuries to key players, controversial VAR calls and a manager being poached just before the business end of the season. But, as they say, the league table doesn't lie.

Billy Hogg can be found at Misery Hunters