MacPherson out to harness momentum from victory

Published on Friday 22 May 2009 22:27

ST MIRREN manager Gus MacPherson is looking to recapture the magic of their impressive win at Falkirk on and off the park as they bid to stay in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League.

The Paisley outfit will be assured of their top-flight status with a draw against Hamilton at St Mirren Park today and will only go down if they lose by two more goals than Inverness, who play Falkirk at home.

MacPherson wants the fans and players to use last weekend's victory as a template for success as St Mirren search for their first SPL win at their new stadium.

The players were roared on to a 2-0 win at Falkirk, which took them off the bottom, taking the game by the scruff of the neck in the first minute.

"We will approach it in exactly the same manner we did last week against Falkirk," said McPherson.

"The players set a standard last week that we want to maintain. They made demands of each other and will look to do the same."

St Mirren had slumped to the bottom following disappointing home defeats by Motherwell and Inverness and MacPherson has urged his players to make amends.

"They were down after a couple of poor performances and results," he said. "Last week it was very, very quiet and subdued. This week there is no doubt the training has been more high tempo. That's a good sign as well. We've said to the players that's got to be carried into the games."

St Mirren almost filled the away stand at Falkirk last weekend and MacPherson wants similar encouragement at home.

"I think the supporters underestimate the importance they can play in a players' performance," he said.

"They were absolutely superb at Falkirk and not just because of the way we started. Before the first whistle, they were vocal and very, very positive."

Saints fans may have a double celebration in the coming days with the club pushing Motherwell all the way for Scotland's extra place in the Europa League via the Fair Play league.

The Scottish Football Association say it is "too close to call" between both teams, with the result to be announced on Tuesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, counterpart Billy Reid's summer recruitment drive is already under way after the Hamilton manager watched Aston Villa's second string beat Sunderland to win their league.

Reid was at Villa Park yesterday to cast his eye over some of the talent on show, having already stated his intention to bring up to eight players to New Douglas Park this summer.

"We've got some targets and we're just checking up on them," said Reid, who expects a large turnaround of playing staff this summer. A number of out-of-contract players will move on – Chris Swailes has already been released – while the club will sell some of their young stars if the price is right.