{"id":16585,"title":"It\u2019s Business Time","description":"It has been another very fun week to be a St Mirren fan, with back-to-back league and cup wins turning the 2021\/22 campaign dial from \u201cI\u2019ll take that\u201d to \u201cYass, actually\u201d. Here are five talking points from the past seven days. Top Six on Track","content":"

By Andrew Christie<\/em><\/strong><\/p>

It has been another very fun week to be a St Mirren fan, with back-to-back league and cup wins turning the 2021\/22 campaign dial from \u201cI\u2019ll take that\u201d to \u201cYass, actually\u201d.<\/p>

Here are five talking points from the past seven days.<\/p>

Top Six on Track<\/strong>\"\"
While last Wednesday\u2019s 2-1 home win over St Johnstone may not have been the most convincing of performances, it was a satisfying victory in the type of game we typically struggled with in the first half of the season. In the horrendous Paisley conditions, Saints battled hard to keep St Johnstone at arm\u2019s length for the majority of the game.<\/p>

St Mirren now sit in sixth place in the Premiership, a point behind Dundee Utd and Motherwell in fifth and fourth respectively, with a game in hand against Dundee next Wednesday. Should we claim three points at Dens, we would be sitting in fourth place, with eight points between us and Hearts in third place.<\/p>

The remaining February fixtures see us face off against Livingston (A), Dundee (A) and Hearts (H). With form on our side (we are second only to Celtic across the past six league games), and the squad finally feeling on the cusp of clicking tactically, an assault on the top half of the table is far from an unrealistic expectation. Outwith Glasgow, the league is the most open it has been for seasons, and this is something we should look to take full advantage of.<\/p>

The Road to Hampden<\/strong>\"\"
Despite many identifying St Mirren\u2019s Scottish Cup tie with Kelty Hearts as a potential upset, the 4-0 win was as routine as it was satisfying to watch. Without ever really having to get out of first gear in the SMISA Stadium, goals from Alex Greive, Jordan Jones and Greg Kiltie (x2) saw us dispatch Kevin Thomson\u2019s men and progress to the Quarter Final, where we will meet Hearts at Tynecastle in March.<\/p>

With the Quarter Finals being made up of the top seven teams in the current league table (and Dundee. Lol, hiya wee man), the cup is as competitive as we have seen.<\/p>

We have faced Hearts in the Scottish Cup 12 times in the past, winning six games to the Gorgie side\u2019s five. While our record at Tynecastle may leave a little to be desired (and obviously current form can change between now and March) there is not much currently in the country I wouldn\u2019t back us to compete with.<\/p>

Last season saw two trips to Hampden for Jim Goodwin\u2019s men, and ultimately disappointment on both fronts. With stadia now open, St Mirren will be desperate to return with a full fanbase in tow.<\/p>

Could we mark the 35th anniversary of our last Scottish Cup triumph with a similar achievement?<\/p>

Saint and Greivesy<\/strong>\"\"
While Jim Goodwin\u2019s St Mirren have been able to hang their hats on defensive stability and organisation, attacking flair and creativity is something that has continued to allude us.<\/p>

Since returning from the winter break and switching to a 4231 we have looked levels above where we have been in the attacking third.<\/p>

A big part of this has been the additions of Jordan Jones and Alex Greive.<\/p>

The New Zealand international has slotted in seamlessly since an injury to Eamonn Brophy saw him thrown in at the deep end. Leading the line, the 22-year-old has displayed intelligence, movement and endeavour, running the channels and occupying opposition defenders well, with his physical strength and ability to draw a foul huge in getting Saints up the park. \u2013 all with the caveat that he has played just 300 minutes of professional football (a number considerably smaller than the amount of Flight of the Conchords references I\u2019ve made on Twitter since he joined).<\/p>

He is the perfect striker in the current formation, he knows exactly where a striker should be to get on the end of balls (as his two goals in two games have shown) or create space for others around him (it was Greive\u2019s movement that led to the defensive mix up for Kiltie\u2019s second goal vs Kelty Hearts)<\/p>

There are still parts of his game that need smoothing out, as you would expect from a young man with just 300 minutes of professional football under his belt, but the potential is undoubtedly there, and Greive could prove huge in St Mirren\u2019s push towards the end of the season.<\/p>

Another key part of this push will be the influence of Jordan Jones on the left wing. With every kick of the ball in black and white, Jones looks closer to the player we recognise from Kilmarnock \u2013 his goal against Kelty (a sublime curling effort into the top corner) showing exactly what he is capable of.<\/p>

In his three league games he has attempted, on average, 4 dribbles per 90, showing a desire we have often missed out wide. Whether backed up by Scott Tanser or Richard Tait behind him, it is a formidable left wing for Saints, and an important creative avenue going forward.<\/p>

\u201cThe Rug that Ties the Room Together\u201d<\/strong><\/p>

\"\"
One issue with Goodwin\u2019s 352 formation in the first half of the season was the defensive expectation placed on, well\u2026 every Saints midfielder not named Alan Power. While players like Jamie McGrath, Connor Ronan and Ethan Erhahon were more than capable of driving forward possession with a dribble or pass, we saw ourselves give away far too many cheap goals \u2013 particularly on the counter and particularly through the middle of the park.<\/p>

Enter Alexandros Gogi\u0107.<\/p>

The 27-year-old Cypriot international\u2019s game may not be one for many YouTube packages \u2013 his work instead best appreciated through what it allows those around him to do \u2013 but in just three appearances in Saints\u2019 new 4231 formation, Gogi\u0107\u2019s combativeness and astute tactical intelligence have seen him shine.<\/p>

While no stranger to mixing it up physically, Gogi\u0107\u2019s reputation as a mere midfield destroyer perhaps undersells his value, with the Hibs loanee preferring to use his tactical intelligence and reading of the game to break up attacks rather than brute force \u2013 as his 6 clearances, 2 interceptions, 1 block and 4 recoveries vs St Johnstone last week shows.<\/p>

With Gogi\u0107 and Power its base, the attacking midfield three of Jordan Jones, Connor Ronan and Greg Kiltie are afforded the freedom to express themselves fully with ample cover behind them.<\/p>

Whether dropping back to protect the centre backs or supporting the attack, Gogi\u0107 is the player we have been crying out for. He is The Dude\u2019s rug \u2013 really tying the squad together, leaving us with the most balanced starting xi\u2019s we have seen in a long time.<\/p>

Goodwin (A)?<\/strong>\"\"
One potentially concerning piece of news was Aberdeen\u2019s announcement at the weekend of the departure of manager Stephen Glass.<\/p>

The Dons have been in freefall in recent months, with Saturday\u2019s Scottish Cup exit proving the death knell for the former Atlanta Utd 2 manager\u2019s 11-month tenure in the North East.<\/p>

With one of the league\u2019s most high-profile jobs sitting vacant, the past few days have seen the usual list of candidates banded about. Chief amongst them, worryingly, is our very own Jim Goodwin \u2013 with Dons legend Willie Miller taking a break from living out his best Old Man Yells At Cloud life to give the Irishman his personal endorsement in the national press.<\/p>

Was Jim Goodwin to be approached by Aberdeen, it would be a very difficult opportunity for him to turn down, with the job representing a massive upgrade in personal wage, club budget and resources (not to mention the chance to work with JET).<\/p>

Looking at the situation objectively, the job may be one that has come too soon for Goodwin. While it is obvious the Irishman has a massive future ahead of him, his full-time management career is in its relative infancy, with just under three years (and three part-time with Alloa) of experience under his belt.<\/p>

He strikes me as the type of manager who would want a level of control over recruitment that Dave Cormack and Aberdeen would not afford him, and with a notoriously expectant fanbase behind it, it is a club where things can go wrong very quickly.<\/p>

At the same time, however, Goodwin is an ambitious young manager, and there is every chance he may back himself to be the one to divert Dave Cormack\u2019s rodeo clown car of a football club back to its desired roadway rather than its current path of hurtling towards the North Sea.<\/p>

St Mirren are currently well in contention for a Top Six league finish and have a cup quarter final to look forward to next month, giving Goodwin a real chance to raise his profile on the national stage. Should his ambitions lie outside of Paisey I don\u2019t think it is a stretch to say that a job in England could be waiting for him in the summer.<\/p>

With a bit of luck, Dave Cormack's hubris will see him appoint some dud from the US rather than what would appear to be a raft of sensible options, and the entire situation will pass Saints by without unsettling any parties involved.<\/p>","urlTitle":"its-business-time","url":"\/blog\/its-business-time\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/its-business-time\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/miseryhunters.co.uk\/blog\/its-business-time\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1645006316,"updatedAt":1645006983,"publishedAt":1645006983,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":106606,"name":"Misery Hunters"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/2qhdllayiusdnubszrjh8gwaadqot5ht8b4mod4s669exvfy.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/2qhdllayiusdnubszrjh8gwaadqot5ht8b4mod4s669exvfy.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/2qhdllayiusdnubszrjh8gwaadqot5ht8b4mod4s669exvfy.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"","metaDescription":"","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":13867,"title":"Saints Row","url":"\/blog\/saints-row\/","urlTitle":"saints-row","division":106606,"description":"So much of supporting St Mirren is playing an Operation-style game of trying to dig out positives without setting off the \u201caw here that\u2019s actually not very good is it?\u201d buzzer in the process. Our trip to face St Johnstone on Saturday was very much an example of this. St Mirren (or as we\u2019re officially known up McDiarmid Park after seven goalless years, \u201cSt Mirren nil\u201d) lined up against Callum Davidson\u2019s men off the back of a disappointing home defeat to Dundee last weekend","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/yeldeoiwkla2hlrifenh7rsyn7wtal43zbcb7tzfs4tvw3iu.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/yeldeoiwkla2hlrifenh7rsyn7wtal43zbcb7tzfs4tvw3iu.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":42062,"title":"The 2024\/25 Scottish Premiership Shirts, Ranked","url":"\/blog\/kit-ranking-title\/","urlTitle":"kit-ranking-title","division":106606,"description":"Misery Hunters resident football shirt enjoyer, hipster and legend Andrew Christie rates this season's Scottish Premiership kits.","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/w2eitv2d9twkniayvttextqligscyxfrnf5ax8r6vqdoq9no.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/w2eitv2d9twkniayvttextqligscyxfrnf5ax8r6vqdoq9no.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0},{"id":16226,"title":"All Too 'Well","url":"\/blog\/all-too\/","urlTitle":"all-too","division":106606,"description":"Fresh from an eventful deadline day that included the signings of Jordan Jones, Alex Gogi\u0107 and the departure of Jamie McGrath, St Mirren welcomed fourth-placed Motherwell to the SMISA Stadium on Tuesday night. Since losing talismanic striker Tony Watt to Dundee United, Graham Alexander\u2019s side have felt like a team struggling with their own footballing identity, picking up only a single point from three disappointing, tactically disjointed displays this side of the winter break. Upon seeing Saints\u2019 new boy Jones start in an attacking 4231 \u2013 fan\u2019s confidence of a fourth win on the bounce for the Paisley side was high","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/0zkqcx2d43po4dzqi9jmr7u4hnf0mvqjbrdsdkzg0kkivtfp.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/0zkqcx2d43po4dzqi9jmr7u4hnf0mvqjbrdsdkzg0kkivtfp.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}