This Scottish Premier League match will kick off at 14:45 GMT, on Saturday 20 February 2011, at St Mirren Park, Paisley.
St Mirren continues to limp on the wrong end of the board, picking up some odd spots here and there to stay away from Hamilton Accies and the dreaded drop spot, but they actually look pretty far from convincing. If Accies ever found his self-confidence, it could all be over for St Mirren.
The question on everyone’s lips at the moment is “Is Hibs finally turning out well?” They just had two wins in a row, so maybe they are. Of course it’s too early to tell, but it makes this game harder to read. Before those victories, not many would have supported Hibs to win at Paisley, but now …?
A look at how these teams have performed in recent matches will give us an idea of what the weekend’s match between them will be like:
The record of the last 5 games of St Mirren says …
[St Mirren’s score first]
Feb 12 Home 3-3 vs Inverness Caledonian Thistle
February 5 Away 2-1 vs Ayr United (Scottish Cup)
February 2 Away 0-2 vs Hibernian
January 26 Home 1-1 vs Dundee United
January 22 Away 0-0 vs St Johnstone
Hibernian’s latest 5 game record says …
[Hibernian’s score first]
February 12 Home 2-1 vs Kilmarnock
February 2 Home 2-0 vs St Mirren
Jan 30 Away 0-3 vs Dundee United
January 26 Local 0-2 vs Rangers
Jan 22 Away 0-2 vs Motherwell
Note: In analyzing the current form of these two teams, I have taken into account their most recent matches, regardless of whether they were in the Scottish Premier League or not. You can assume that all previous matches were held in the Scottish Premier League, except where you have specified otherwise, in parentheses.
I would be inclined to give Hibs the benefit of the doubt and hope they activate him against the Saints. Derek Riordan can’t stay quiet for long and with new signings Akpo Sodje and Victor Palsson on fire last week against Kilmarnock, the Hi-bees should win by 2 or even 3 clear goals.
There’s nothing like a fully functioning, highly safe, all-cylinder Hibs. Maybe we are heading towards that. For the sake of Scottish football, let’s hope so.
