1,039 supporters will be able to attend St Mirren’s Premier Sports Cup match against Partick Thistle on Sunday - more than double the capacity we welcomed for our match against Dunfermline last week.

The attendance figure is in line with current safety guidance from the Scottish Government with one metre distancing required from other households. Those who have been successful in the ballot will be contacted by Thursday evening.

Clearly, the club would love to have been in a position to welcome more fans and can assure our supporters that we have worked as hard as we possibly could to get as many fans into the stadium as is safely possible. We are disappointed that more won’t be able to attend but appreciate that the safety of supporters is paramount.

Over the coming weeks, we will continue to work with relevant authorities to try and increase the allowed capacity at the SMiSA Stadium.

We are desperate to welcome as many of you into the SMiSA Stadium as soon as we possibly can and appreciate supporters’ patience as we work behind the scenes to make this happen.

St Mirren made it nine points from nine in Group H of the Premier Sports Cup as second-half goals from Curtis Main, Kristian Dennis and Lee Erwin helped Jim Goodwin's men to a 3-1 win at Stenhousemuir. 

After a dominant, but goalless 45, Saints scored three second-half goals to maintain their 100% start to the season and effectively guarantee qualification into the knock-out rounds of the cup.

A bright start for the Buddies saw Cammy MacPherson nearly open the scoring from his own half with just six minutes on the clock. The Saints Academy graduate spotted Stenny goalkeeper Ryan Marshall off his line and, from 50 yards, tried to catch the stopper out with the ball only just drifting wide. 

Despite having the bulk of possession in the opening half-hour, Saints hadn't really managed to trouble Marshall. And the home side would fire the Buddies a warning shot on 29 minutes when Robert Thomson narrowly missed after getting a foot on to Sean Crighton's knock-down. 

But still it was St Mirren who were enjoying the best of the match. MacPherson wasn't far away with a free-kick for Saints on 31 minutes after Greg Kiltie had been fouled 25 yards from goal. The midfielder got plenty on it as he put it over the wall, but sent the attempt over the bar. Marshall was then forced into a brilliant save a couple of minutes later when Main tried an acrobatic effort. The Stenny goalie had to be at full-stretch to push away.

It was Main who should have had St Mirren in front on 38 minutes when he was found in space at the back post. The forward didn't quite catch it flush and couldn't force home.

Saints' first-half dominance may not have yielded a goal for Jim Goodwin's men, but it would only take four minutes after the restart for the Buddies to take the lead. A MacPherson ball over the top caused a mix-up between Marshall and one of his defenders, allowing Main to take advantage and this time he wouldn't miss - knocking into the empty net to score his second goal in as many games. 

Curtis Main scores his second goal in as many games to open the scoring (Image: Andy Barr)

Dennis then scored his first of the season on 65 minutes to double the Buddies lead. A quick throw-in from Ryan Flynn allowed Kiltie to roll the ball across the Stenhousemuir box where Dennis was on hand to knock into the net from close-range in his final act of the match before being replaced by Eamonn Brophy. 

The Buddies appeared home and hosed only for the home side to pull a goal back with less than 15 minutes of the match remaining through Thomas Orr.

Despite a minor scare in the final five minutes, it was St Mirren who looked the more likely to grab a goal in the dying embers and that proved to be the case when Erwin, after some persistence, drove home his first of the season in added time to all but secure Saints' passage into the knockout round of the Premier Sports Cup.

Lee Erwin drives home his first goal of the season (Image: Andy Barr)

Full-Time: Stenhousemuir 1-3 St Mirren

St Mirren: Lyness, Fraser (c), McCarthy, Finlayson, Flynn, MacPherson (Power 67), Erhahon, Kiltie (McGrath 67), Tanser (Henderson 76), Dennis (Brophy 67), Main (Erwin 67)
Subs Not Used: Alnwick, Tait, McAllister, Jack

Stenhousemuir: Marshall, Lyon, Jamieson, Crighton (c), Coll, Mills (Brown 83), Forbes, Wedderburn, Lyon (O'Reilly 56), Thomson (Christie 73), Orr
Subs Not Used: Smith, Anderson, Tierney, Graham

Referee: David Dickinson
Assistant Referee: Sean Carr
Assistant Referee: Barry Reid

St Mirren head to Stenhousemuir on Tuesday night looking to take a step closer to progression into the knockout phase of the Premier Sports Cup.

Jim Goodwin's men sit on six points from two matches - having been awarded a 3-0 win over Dumbarton before defeating Dunfermline Athletic 1-0 at the SMiSA Stadium last week.

Saints were due to begin their campaign away to Dumbarton, but with Sons unable to fulfil the fixture, the Buddies were awarded the points. 

Our season would get underway last Tuesday when Dunfermline were the visitors to Paisley. Curtis Main, netting on his debut, scored the game's only goal in front of 500 fans at the SMiSA Stadium.

Stenhousemuir have taken three points from their opening two matches - winning 2-1 away to Dumbarton last Tuesday in their opening fixture. The Warriors then faced cinch Championship side Partick Thistle at Ochilview on Saturday and led at half-time, but ultimately succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. 

Match Details

Stenhousemuir v St Mirren
Competition: Premier Sports Cup
Date: Tuesday 20th July 2021
Kick-off: 7:30pm
Venue: Ochilview Park

How to watch the match

The match will be streamed by Stenhousemuir at a cost of £10. The link to buy this match is available here. 

There will be no live coverage on St Mirren TV.  

Previous

This will be the first time St Mirren and Stenhousemuir have faced in almost 15 years. 

A John Sutton goal either side of a Billy Mehmet double gave Saints a 3-1 win over the Warriors in a League Cup second round tie at Love Street in August 2006 in the last meeting between the two.

The Buddies are unbeaten in their last six against Stenny - stretching back to a 3-1 loss in the old second division back in 1974. 

In the 19 matches between the two sides, Saints have won 14, drawn two and lost three. 

The officials

David Dickinson is the referee on Tuesday night. Sean Carr and Barry Reid are the linesmen. 

Saints celebrate win Premier Sports Cup win over Dunfermline Athletic

St Mirren defeated Annan Athletic 4-0 at the SMiSA Stadium in a closed-door friendly ahead of our Premier Sports Cup clash with Stenhousemuir on Tuesday. 

Saints raced into a 3-0 lead in the first nine minutes with Kristian Dennis scoring two tidy finishes within four minutes of each other before Cammy MacPherson leathered home a third. 

The game settled after a frantic beginning, but Saints threatened to further their lead before half-time with MacPherson having a shot blocked on the line and Kyle McAllister flashing just wide after a nice passage of play. 

Jim Goodwin made 10 changes in the second-half. Dylan Reid came on at the break, while Peter Urminsky, Marcus Fraser, Joe Shaughnessy, Scott Tanser, Alan Power, Greg Kiltie, Jay Henderson, Lewis Jamieson and Eamonn Brophy were all introduced at the hour mark. 

Brophy added a fourth - and his third goal of pre-season - with 20 minutes remaining to round-off the scoring.

St Mirren: Lyness (Urminsky 60), Finlayson, McCarthy (Fraser 60), Dunne (Reid 46), Tait (Shaughnessy 60), Flynn (Tanser 60), Erhahon (Power 60), MacPherson (Kiltie 60), McAllister (Henderson 60), Erwin (Jamieson 60), Dennis (Brophy 60)

Season ticket holders who have renewed their tickets, registered on Future Ticketing or been in contact, by any means, with the club regarding their renewal will be automatically entered into the ballot for our match against Partick Thistle on Sunday 25th July. Working with the Scottish Government, Renfrewshire Council and the Joint Response Group, we are awaiting final confirmation for numbers allowed into the stadium for the game. We will provide you with this information in due course.

Those who have been successful in the ballot will be contacted by the end of the day on Thursday 22nd July with their entry instructions.

The present match day experience is different from usual, so it is vitally important that supporters take the time to read and follow all the instructions that are sent to ensure successful entry into the SMiSA Stadium.

Entry to the stadium

Entry to the South and West Stands will be via the Drums Avenue gate, while those in the North Stand should enter via the Ferguslie Park gate. Car parking is available on a first come first served basis and limited due to COVID restrictions. Those arriving in cars should do so only via the Ferguslie Park gate.

The club is grateful for feedback from supporters who attended on Tuesday night regarding entry times to the stadium. Time-slots will still be necessary to ensure safe entry of supporters, however, the first time-slots for entry will begin 75 minutes before kick-off, rather than 90 minutes.

Cost of entry

Tickets will once again be priced at £12 for adults and £6 for concessions. They must be purchased prior to the match either online, by phone or at the St Mirren Ticket Office. Instructions will be provided on how to select your seats and pay for those who are successful in the ballot. The ticket office will be open from 10am to 2pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday to provide assistance with sales. The ticket office will not open on Sunday 25th due to COVID restrictions but you can still purchase your ticket online, if applicable.

COVID Guidance

Please help us keep fans and all staff members as safe as possible by following our COVID-19 guidance. Face coverings will be required as part of the Joint Response Group’s guidance on return to matches. We must follow all compliance to ensure safety of supporters.

Supporters should limit their movements to and from their seat as much as possible and use our one-way system when using the toilet facilities. No refreshments will be sold but those attending will be able to bring in a snack as well as water and soft drinks in plastic bottles only. Strictly no alcohol is permitted.

Details about our ballot

With the ever-changing nature of COVID restrictions, the club has decided that the match ballots will be treated as stand-alone events. We are hopeful that restrictions will ease further and allow higher numbers to attend soon and will keep you informed accordingly.

We cannot wait to welcome as many fans as possible back with us next Sunday as we look to progress to the next round of the Premier Sports Cup #InYouWeTrust.

Curtis Main's first St Mirren goal got Saints' 2021/22 season off to a winning start. 

The English striker headed home the game's only goal as Jim Goodwin's men defeated Dunfermline 1-0 in front of 500 fans at the SMiSA Stadium.

Saints were well worthy of the points in a dominant display against the cinch Championship side. 

Jamie McGrath - St Mirren Player of the Year last season - had the first effort with 10 minutes played when he drove forward, but he fired high and wide from distance.

Dunfermline goalkeeper Owain Fon Williams was forced into the game's first save when he tipped Scott Tanser's long-range half-volley over the bar.

The Buddies took the lead just before the half-hour mark when Main headed home. The striker leapt above the Pars defence to meet Greg Kiltie's cross. Fon Williams was at full stretch and managed to get a touch but couldn't keep the effort out of the net as Main opened his St Mirren account.

Curtis Main heads home

The forward was proving a handful for the Pars backline and towered over the visiting defence again early in the second-half, but nodded Tanser's cross over. A few minutes later it was Main again who met a McGrath corner kick with Fon Williams doing well to hold. 

Greg Kiltie almost marked his St Mirren debut with a goal after a wonderful surging run. The midfielder drove forward from deep in the Dunfermline half, evading two challenges, before firing a strike which Fon Williams bundled behind.

Saints could have killed the game heading into the final stages. Substitute Lee Erwin fired a rasping effort just wide with 13 minutes remaining while Kristian Dennis should have scored when he latched on to a terrific long-range pass from Charles Dunne. The striker brought the ball down brilliantly but couldn't lift over Fon Williams. 

Dunfermline felt they should have had a penalty in the dying stages of the games when the ball came off the hand of Dunne inside the area, but referee Craig Napier wasn't having it. It would have been harsh on the defender who impressed on his debut. 

In the end, one goal proved to be enough as Saints marked the return of supporters with a win.

Full-Time: St Mirren 1-0 Dunfermline Athletic

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Henderson, McGrath (Erhahon 66), Power, Kiltie (MacPherson 66), Tanser (McAllister 74), Main (Erwin 66), Brophy (Dennis 66)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Tait, Finlayson, Flynn

Dunfermline: Fon Williams, Comrie, Edwards, Graham MacDonald, O'Hara, Todorov, Pybus, Allan, Thomas (Wighton 62), Watson
Subs Not Used: Mehmet, Gaspuitis, Fenton, Todd

Referee: Craig Napier
Assistant Referee: Ross Macleod
Assistant Referee: Craig Macrae

St Mirren welcome supporters back to the SMiSA Stadium for the first time in 16 months with 500 lucky supporters attending our Premier Sports Cup match against Dunfermline Athletic.

Saints were due to face Dumbarton on Saturday in what would have been our first match of the 2021/22 season. However, Dumbarton informed the SPFL that they were unable to fulfil the fixture, which saw the Buddies awarded a 3-0 win. 

Dunfermline's season did get underway on Saturday as they faced Partick Thistle at Firhill in their Premier Sports Cup opener. Peter Grant's side came from behind to defeat the Jags 4-2. 

Match Details

St Mirren v Dunfermline Athletic
Competition: Premier Sports Cup
Date: Tuesday 13th July 2021
Kick-off: 7:45pm
Venue: SMiSA Stadium

How to watch the match

For those who were not lucky enough to be selected in the ballot, the match will be shown live on St Mirren TV PPV for a cost of £10. 

If you are a season ticket holder you will have to create a new account on ppv.stmirren.com. 

St Mirren TV international subscribers can watch the match as part of their subscription.

Previous

Tuesday's match will come almost two years to the day since Jim Goodwin's first match in charge of Saints.

That afternoon saw the Buddies face Dunfermline at the SMiSA Stadium in what was our last meeting with the Pars. Despite goals in quick succession from Cody Cooke and Danny Mullen, Saints were edged out 3-2. 

Saints had won the three previous matches against the Pars - winning 2-0, 2-1 and 1-0 in the 2017/18 season. 

Ryan Flynn battles in midfield in our last meeting against Dunfermline (Image: Allan Picken)

The officials

Greg Aitken is the referee on Tuesday night. He'll be assisted by Ross Macleod and Craig Macrae. 

On what was supposed to be the eve of our first match of the new season, I wanted to give an update on a number of topics around the club.

First and foremost, I sympathise with Dumbarton and would like to wish the affected player all the best in his recovery.

The first-team squad is looking strong and the manager has added to his team with the signings of Charles Dunne, Curtis Main, Greg Kiltie, Scott Tanser and Alan Power. We currently have 25 first-team players and are in a good place heading into the new season.

The team defeated Northern Irish champions Linfield 3-0 in a friendly in Belfast last weekend before following that up with a 3-1 win over Ayr United at the SMiSA Stadium on Tuesday night.

It was great to see St Mirren Youth Academy graduate Jay Henderson score as well as our strikers getting goals with Eamonn Brophy, Lee Erwin and Kristian Dennis all scoring across the two matches.

Both the League and Scottish Cup competitions were important for us last season as we reached the semi-final in both. It would be great to go on another cup run this season and that will now start on Tuesday night against Dunfermline.

Season ticket sales

Incredibly, we achieved record first day season tickets sales as over 1,000 season ticket holders renewed on the first day of sales.

We’ve had a great uptake on season ticket renewals with around 3,000 having either registered or renewed so far.

We do not take that support for granted and I want to say a huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who has renewed their season ticket so far. We can’t wait to have you back at the SMiSA Stadium soon.

If you were a season ticket holder last season and missed our original registration event but still wish to reserve your seat, you must email info@stmirren.com by midnight on Sunday 11th July. The details required are

• Full Name
• Phone Number
• Home Address
• Date of birth
• Ticket type
• Seat section, row and number

We have taken the decision to push general sales back one week until Tuesday 20th July to ensure that no season ticket holders from last year will lose their seats.

I’d also like to thank everyone for their continued patience as we work through all the emails and calls from those who have been in touch requiring assistance. We have a hard-working team in the background getting through all these enquiries and can assure everyone that they will receive a response.

Ballot

On Tuesday night we will welcome 500 fans to the SMiSA Stadium for our match against Dunfermline. This will be the first time we have had supporters in our stadium in 16 months and personally, I cannot wait to have our brilliant fans back in. Those successful in the ballot have been contacted by email to confirm their attendance.

The match day experience will be different to when fans were last able to visit the SMiSA Stadium, so it is vitally important that those in the lucky 500  take the time to read and follow all the instructions that have been sent out to ensure hassle-free entry.

Football over the last year or so truly hasn’t been the same without you. Hopefully before too long we will be able to welcome you back in more significant numbers.

For those who are unsuccessful in the ballot, the match will be shown live on St Mirren TV PPV.

Improvements at Ralston

In a previous update, I discussed upgrades being made to the facilities at the St Mirren Training Ground at Ralston. You can read about those here. The work is progressing well and I look forward to it being completed.

We are also going to be installing a Spiideo camera system for use by the first team and academy. This new system, which will see a number of cameras spread across the training pitches, will allow us to enhance our current video analysis setup and offer the coaching staff a wider array of information to assist with training and matches.

These systems will also be installed at the SMiSA Stadium and will be a tremendous asset for our club.

Finally

I just want to finish by once again thanking everyone for their support of the club over the last 16 months. Your support has been truly incredible and I cannot wait to have you all #BeInThatNumber once again.

The SPFL Board has awarded a 3-0 win to St Mirren in Saturday’s Premier Sports Cup tie against Dumbarton, after the League One side informed the SPFL that they are unable to fulfil the fixture.

Dumbarton informed the SPFL that a player had tested positive for COVID-19 and, as a result of close contacts and player injuries, they do not have sufficient players available to fulfil the fixture.

St Mirren Football Club would like to wish the affected player all the very best in his recovery.

St Mirren Football Club can confirm the squad numbers designated to each player for season 2021/22.

A number of players have changed numbers for the upcoming season with Jamie McGrath taking the number seven, Eamonn Brophy becoming our new number nine and Ethan Erhahon moving from 25 to 16.

In terms of our new signings, Scott Tanser takes the number three, Alan Power will be six, Curtis Main will be 10, Greg Kiltie is 11 and Charles Dunne is 18.

As the squad stands at present the numbers are as follows:

1 - Jak Alnwick
2 - Richard Tait
3 - Scott Tanser
4 - Joe Shaughnessy (c)
5 - Conor McCarthy
6 - Alan Power
7 - Jamie McGrath
8 - Ryan Flynn
9 - Eamonn Brophy
10 - Curtis Main
11 - Greg Kiltie
12 - Jay Henderson
14 - Cammy MacPherson
15 - Dylan Reid
16 - Ethan Erhahon
17 - Kyle McAllister
18 - Charles Dunne
19 - Daniel Finlayson
20 - Kristian Dennis
22 - Marcus Fraser
23 - Lee Erwin
24 - Lewis Jamieson
25 - Josh Jack
26 - Dean Lyness
27 - Peter Urminsky