Jim Goodwin gives his reaction as the Buddies fightback from 3-1 down to draw 3-3 with Livingston at the Simple Digital Arena this afternoon.

Saints and Livingston brightened up a dreich December day by sharing six goals in a festive thriller.

Livi took the lead early on as Aymen Souda took advantage of Ryan Flynn's error to bend the ball into the net from the edge of the box. The Buddies were level when Jon Obika teed up Junior Morias to score, but Livi retook the lead just before the break when Jon Guthrie headed home Craig Sibbald's free-kick.

The goals continued in the second half and Souda seemed to have killed things off when he prodded the ball past Vaclv Hladky, but Jon Obika had other ideas – halving the deficit by diverting Tony Andreu's shot home before seeing another shot loop over Matija Sarkic thanks to a huge deflection.

Injury to Paul McGinn meant youngster Scott Glover was handed his debut at the heart of the Saints defence. He almost had a horror start, the strong wind taking his attempt to Ricki Lamie's hoof up the park spinning over Hladky but the keeper recovered in time to spare everyone's blushes.

The Buddies had looked the better side in the opening quarter of an hour so it was a huge blow when Livingston took the lead with their first real attack. A mistake from Flynn was pounced on by Souda and he ran to the edge of the box before curling a low shot round Hladky into the bottom corner.

The wind continued to cause problems, Sibbald's attempt to deliver a free-kick into the box almost ending up in the net. Hladky then did well to turn away a Dykes header before Cammy MacPherson tried to draw Saints level from long range, however his effort was easily caught by Sarkic. Another chance came when a free-kick was only cleared as far as Ilkay Durmus at the edge of the box but his shot looked to be going wide even before hitting a team-mate.

The winger was rather closer with his next shot, his fancy footwork gaining him the space he needed to let rip but it was straight at Sarkic, although the goalie needed two attempts at gathering the ball. An equaliser looked to be on the way and it duly arrived shortly after Saints had survived a bit of pinball in their own box. Obika won the ball from Lamie and forced his way past the Livi defence before unselfishly squaring for Morias to slot home from close range.

The Livi players felt they should have had a penalty shortly after play resumed, feeling Lyndon Dykes' shot had been blocked by the arm of Sean McLoughlin. The makeshift Saints defence was unsurprisingly looking fragile, an inability to clear their lines letting Souda get away a shot that spun out for a throw. Durmus then looked to have played Morias in for his second but the offside flag was up long before the ball ended up in the net.

The Buddies seemed to be finishing the opening 45 minutes on top but found themselves back behind in the dying seconds of the half. As Sibbald lifted a free-kick into the box, the Saints defence appeared to be waiting for an offside flag that never came, allowing Guthrie all the time and space he needed to head past Hladky.

Souda tried to double his side's advantage in the opening moments of the second half, his shot deflected behind for a corner. The Buddies then lost Kyle McAllister to injury, Tony Andreu taking his place and before he could make an impact, Livi got their third as they once again took advantage of slack defending. A long free-kick from Sarkic was flicked on by Dykes and Souda brought the ball under control before poking past Hladky.

Game over? It probably would have been had Guthrie been able to get his head on Steve Lawson's wicked cross. Instead, Saints set about getting themselves back into things and when the ball fell to Andreu at a corner, his shot was diverted past Sarkic to reduce the deficit. It was the same player who scored the equaliser with less than 20 minutes to go, Andreu racing on to a mis-placed shot to pull it back for Obika whose shot took a huge deflection that spun it over Sarkic and over the line to the delight of the home crowd.

Obika fancied a hat-trick, the Livi defence stopping him getting on the end of a knock-down from sub Cody Cooke, who had replaced Glover just before the equaliser. The roles were reversed a few minutes later as Obika looked to have sent Cooke through on goal, however he was well offside. The visitors looked to be on the ropes but thought they'd won themselves a penalty when Steven Lawless went flying under a Calum Waters challenge, however ref Nick Walsh booked the Livi man for simulation instead. The former Partick Thistle almost had the last laugh in stoppage time when the ball broke to him at the edge of the box but he rattled his shot well over.

Full-Time: St Mirren 3-3 Livingston

St Mirren: Hladky, Flynn, Glover (Cooke 73), McLoughlin, Waters, McAllister (Andreu 51), Magennis (c), MacPherson, Durmus, Morias, (Mullen 89) Obika
Subs Not Used: Lyness, S.McGinn, Djorkaeff, Jamieson

Livingston: Sarkic, Taylor-Sinclair (Lithgow 46), Sibbald (Jacobs 66), Lamie, Guthrie, Bartley, Pittman, Lawson, Lawless, Souda (Robinson 78), Dykes
Subs Not Used: Stewart, McMillan, Odoffin, Erskine

#SMFCMOM - Jon Obika

Referee: Nick Walsh
Assistant Referee: Kylie Cockburn
Assistant Referee: Stuart Hodge
Fourth Official: Colin Steven

Attendance: 4,344

Gallery pictures by Allan Picken © - Allan Picken Photography

Prior to tomorrow's match the St Mirren first team players will be wearing specially created Fairtrade t-shirts in their pre-match warm up. This is to help promote the use of fair trade products across Renfrewshire.

The t-shirts will be signed and passed into the crowd prior to the match. The club will then announce a winner (player name) at half-time and whoever has the t-shirt will win a prize provided by local fair trade companies Rainbow Turtle and Just Trading Scotland. 

Fair trade is a partnership between consumers and producers. Many of the products we buy in supermarkets or shops are produced by people who are not paid a fair price for their work and, as a result, are forced to live in poverty. 

Fair trade was created as a different way of doing trade. The movement came together to secure better prices, decent working conditions, access to union representation, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for producers in the developing world.

Watch out for a series of fair trade theme events being run by Street Stuff over the next few months. These events will help explain to young people what fait trade means and how they can support the campaign. There will be regular competitions where autographed footballs and prizes will be up for grabs.

St Mirren FC is delighted to support Renfrewshire's campaign for the promotion and use of fair trade products.

St Mirren are back at home on Saturday as Jim Goodwin's men host Livingston at the Simple Digital Arena.

FORM

St Mirren - WLLLWL

Livingston - WDDLLL

Saints picked up their first away win of the season on Saturday with Cammy MacPherson's first goal of the season enough to give the Buddies a well-deserved three points in a 1-0 win at Hamilton.

That win saw Saints halt a three game losing run to climb off the bottom of the table and move up to ninth place ahead of St Johnstone, Hamilton and Hearts. 

An emphatic 3-0 win over Kilmarnock on Saturday saw Livingston finally end a run of eight games without a win. Second-half goals from Jon Guthrie, Lyndon Dykes and Steven Lawless saw Gary Holt's men win for the first time since a 2-0 victory over Celtic at the start of October. 

A good start to the season, in which the Lions were unbeaten in their opening four league matches, has Livingston sitting in seventh place in the Ladbrokes Premiership on 18 points. 

Tomorrow's visitors have picked up six points on the road this season courtesy of a win over Ross County (4-1) and draws with St Johnstone (2-2), Hibernian (2-2) and Hearts (1-1).

PREVIOUS

St Mirren have won two of the last three against Livingston but were narrowly beaten when the sides met at the Tony Macaroni Arena in August. 

Despite Kyle Magennis pulling a goal back, Saints were defeated 2-1 with Alan Lithgow and Lyndon Dykes scoring either side of half-time for Livi.

The Buddies were victorious the last time Livingston visited Paisley back in February 2019. Ryan Flynn scored an 89th minute winner to give Saints an important three points in their battle to avoid relegation. 

However, Livingston did win at the Simple Digital Arena last season. Gary Holt, who in charge of the Lions for the first time, led his side to a 2-0 win over the Buddies in August 2018 in their only away league win of last season.

TEAM NEWS

Kirk Broadfoot and Gary MacKenzie are still out for Saints.

Sam Foley and Paul McGinn are also doubts for tomorrow. 

MANAGER'S THOUGHTS

"The important thing for us is that we try and back up that good win [against Hamilton] with another positive result. That's something we've not been able to do this season.

"Saturday is another opportunity but Livingston are a very good team and we know we have to be at it on the day. They are a better football team than people give them credit for.

"It's going to be all hands to the pump and players might need to play out of position but one or two had to do that against Hamilton last weekend and they were excellent. We know the attitude of the players. They'll play wherever they are asked to play and they will give their all."

If you live outside the UK & Ireland, St Mirren TV is your way to watch Paisley’s Premiership club live in action each and every home match day.

This service, which is delivered by media students from the University of the West of Scotland, will cover all of St Mirren’s home games.

As usual the St Mirren TV team will be presenting all the action from the Simple Digital Arena when Livingston are the visitors for Saturday's Ladbrokes Premiership match.

If you want to tune in here is the info you will need:

St Mirren vs Livingston
Ladbrokes Premiership
Venue: The Simple Digital Arena, Paisley
Date: Saturday 14th December 2019
Kick-off: 3pm GMT

To access this match day service:

1 Day Pass – €6.99 EUR
Season Pass – €69.99 EUR

To view Terms & Conditions and get started with St Mirren TV please click HERE.

For technical support with St Mirren TV please e-mail tvsupport@stmirren.com

Our match day programme, published in partnership with Curtis Sport, will be available from the Club Shop ahead of Saturday’s game.

This issue, for the Ladbrokes Premiership fixture against Livingston, is a 52 pager with a £3 cover price.

This latest edition includes the following:

Front Cover – Kyle McAllister.
The Gaffer - Jim Goodwin looks back on the game against Hamilton and ahead to the match-up with Livingston.
Last Time Out - Allan Picken's pictures from last weekend's win away to Hamilton.
The Opposition – Brian Corry gives the lowdown on the Livingston squad and manager.
St Mirren Programme Archive - Derek Drennan looks back on the 'double issue' editions of the programme.
100 Seasons at the Top - Cairters Corner relays St Mirren's fortunes in the years leading up to World War Two.
They Played in the Stripes – David Cochran looks back on the St Mirren career of Bobby Reid.
English Title Winners - Liam Harding retells the story of the back-to-back Championship wins by Portsmouth.
Centre Page Poster – Paul McGinn.
Fans Corner - Ticket prices, travel clubs update, match info and dates for fans to keep in their diary and fans music pick.
Player Kit Sponsors 2019/20 – Check in to see who is sponsoring your favourite player's shirt for the season.
Panda's Fun Page – Some puzzles to keep the youngsters entertained during the half-time break.
Football Bloody Hell - Alan Gallacher writes up the report card on the first half of the season!
Stats and Picture Quiz - Player appearance stats for the season and picture quiz on St Mirren players who banged in more than 50 goals each for the club.
Street Stuff - Showing support for Fair Trade's Renfrewshire programme. 
Marketing Matters – Campbell Kennedy updates on the latest events and happenings at the club's Commercial Department.
St Mirren Fixtures & Results 2019/20 – A handy reference page of all the fixtures and results for this season.
Team Lines – The two squads and match officials for Saturday’s match.

To buy this issue or to place your programme subscription for the 2019/20 season click HERE.

First Scorer Competition

Paisley Panda is pleased to confirm that 'First Scorer' will be back for the game on Saturday against Livingston.

'First Scorer' lets fans predict in advance of the game who they think will score St Mirren's first goal in Saturday's match against Livingston.

From all of those who guess correctly, a winner will be picked at random and they will win a box of a dozen doughnuts which will be delivered to their seat right after the goal is scored!

To enter all you have to do ahead of the game is post your prediction of the first St Mirren scorer on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #Saints1stgoal.

The lucky winner will then be contacted to confirm which stand they will be in with the row and seat number so that the prize can be delivered to them.

Man of the Match Vote

We are giving fans the opportunity to vote for the man of the match and also put two lucky fans in with the chance of winning a £10 voucher for the Club Shop.

Every home game we’ll throw open the voting on the 60 minute mark for 20 minutes where votes can be cast on Facebook and Twitter. All you have to do is use the hashtag #SMFCMOM followed by the name of the player you are voting for, eg '#SMFCMOM MAGENNIS'.

With 10 minutes of the game remaining all the votes will be counted then the Stadium Announcer will confirm the winning player over the tannoy system.

From all the fans who nominate the winning player one will be picked at random from the Facebook account and another from the Twitter account and they will each be awarded a £10 voucher for the Club Shop. The winners will be notified through the account they posted from and they must collect their voucher immediately after the match.

So get yourself ready on the hour mark of Saturday's match and get voting with #SMFCMOM.

Bung a Baw

Paisley Panda will host the ever-popular match day competition 'Bung a Baw' during the half-time break of Saturday’s match against Livingston.

To take part in 'Bung a Baw' fans need to purchase a small foam ball which is numbered and they will then have a chance to throw their ball towards our club mascot Paisley Panda in front of the Family Stand. Each person will have 60 seconds to do this and the winner will be the person who has thrown the ball closest to the feet of the Panda. The winner will be confirmed over the PA system.

The competition is sponsored by Glen-Bun Bakery who are supplying a full tray of yummy cakes as the prize for the contest winner.

The competition this week is FREE to enter. The balls will be available from sellers inside the Family Stand in the 30 minutes leading up to kick-off and then again in the first 5 minutes of half-time before the competition starts (subject to availability). Each ball is numbered and participants will also get a ticket with the corresponding number which they will use to claim the prize if they win.

'Bung a Baw' continues to be very popular so Paisley Panda advises that you get in early on Saturday to get your ball to take part.

As well as taking care of 'Bung a Baw', Paisley Panda will be giving away sweets to the kids in and around the stadium courtesy of the Black and White Army website.

The St Mirren Fans Council in Partnership with St Mirren Liaison Officers & Paisley Panda pre-match entertainment are bringing the magic of Christmas to our match with Livingston this Saturday.

Between 1-3pm we will have a host of festive fun inside the St Mirren airdome and the great news is it’s absolutely free!

Our range of festive activities include:

*Santa Pandas Grotto with small gift for the kids
*Snow Globe for those magical family pictures
*Our festive balloon modelling
*Become Santa’s little helper with our face painting
*Choir singing Christmas carols

Bring the kids down early and kick off the festive season St Mirren style!

The Fans Council and Home Instead are collecting gift donations for the St Mirren Charitable Foundation's Festive Friends event on Christmas Day. If you wish to donate a gift please take them to the drop off points at the pre-match entertainment. 

The St Mirren Fans Council Panda Club is back for this Saturday's match against Livingston.

The St Mirren Fans Council Panda Club is held within the Airdome two hours prior to kick off at every home game on a Saturday or Sunday, with exception of matches against Celtic and Rangers.

Our great team of friendly coaches take the kids, aged between 3-12 years, for fun, games & tournaments with prizes and surprises aplenty!

AND after all that the kids get a ticket to watch the game with our coaches for FREE!

We have a new Panda Club Membership package available which is a one-off fee of £75 for the season and will provide each child with a healthy Buddie snack box at each game PLUS a goody bag, training top and membership card. 

Alternatively, parents can pay £5 per child per two hour session. Season ticket holders and families with more than one child will qualify for a 20% discount.

For more information on the St Mirren Fans Council Panda Club please call us on (0141) 889-2558 EXT 6124 or e-mail communitytrust@stmirren.com 

St Mirren play host to Livingston in our last home match before Christmas.

St Mirren vs Livingston
Ladbrokes Premiership
Venue: The Simple Digital Arena, Paisley
Date: Saturday 14th December 2019
Kick-off: 3:00pm

The match day officials for Saturday's match against Gary Holt's Livingston side are as follows:

Referee: Nick Walsh
Assistant Referee: Kylie Cockburn
Assistant Referee: Stuart Hodge
Fourth Official: Colin Steven

If you are thinking about coming to The Simple Digital Arena for the first time on Saturday please click HERE for all the info you will need to make sure your match day experience runs as smoothly as possible.

Match Details

The game kicks-off at 3:00pm.

Season Tickets ARE valid for this game.

Match is all ticket – tickets will be on sale (subject to availability) UNTIL KICK OFF.

On the match day St Mirren fans can purchase their tickets (subject to availability) at the St Mirren Ticket Office from 10:00am to kick-off time (3:00pm).

We also have a Ticket Booth sited at the West Stand beside turnstiles T11-14 on a match day.  The Ticket Booth is only for the purchase of tickets (subject to availability) for the West Stand, and also the pick-up point for pre-ordered tickets for the West Stand.  The Ticket Booth will be open from 1:30pm to 3:00pm (kick-off).

Livingston fans can purchase their tickets (subject to availability) from the window at the away end of the ground (North Stand) from 1:30pm to kick-off time (3:00pm).

Tickets can also be purchased from the Online Ticket Shop and downloaded straight to your phone. The process is straight forward with digital tickets accessed through your smfctickets.co.uk account.

The St Mirren Ticket Office (Main Stand) opening hours in the build up to this match are as follows:

Fri, 13th Dec: 10:00am to 2:00pm
Sat, 14th Dec: 10:00am to 3:00pm (kick-off)

The Ticket Booth (West Stand) opening hours in the build up to this match are as follows:

Sat, 14th Dec: 1:30pm to 3:00pm (kick-off)

Ticket Office Phone No: (0141) 840-6130
St Mirren Ticket Office E-Mail: tickets@stmirren.com

Matchday Club Policies (click links for more info)

Unacceptable Conduct

Supporters Code of Conduct

Ticket Information

Visitor Information