Jack Ross gives stmirren.com his thoughts following the 1-1 draw with Dumbarton at the Paisley 2021 Stadium this afternoon which sees the Buddies move off the bottom for the first time since September.

St Mirren came off the bottom of the Ladbrokes Championship for the first time since September after a 1-1 draw with Dumbarton. 

Kyle Magennis scored his second in two games to give St Mirren an early lead before Lewis Vaughan pegged Saints back with a terrific finish. 

The Buddies spurned a great chance to go ahead for a second time when Rory Loy missed from the penalty spot. 

In the end it was a point a piece, enough to move St Mirren to ninth following Ayr's defeat to Queen of the South.

Dumbarton started the match well and went close in the early stages when Darren Barr was on the end of a Robert Thomson cross. The veteran utility man broke into the box and saw his header crash off the top of the bar.

Saints grew into the game and good work from Gary Irvine on the right saw the Buddies win a corner. Stevie Mallan expertly pinged the ball onto the head of Gary MacKenzie who nodded just by the post.

And just like last week's win over Ayr, St Mirren got an early goal to ease the nerves at the Paisley 2021 Stadium. Cammy Smith's ball across found Kyle Magennis who was lurking at the far right side of the box. The 18 year-old controlled the ball before cutting inside and finishing low into the net for his third goal of the season.

The home support were buoyed and could have been celebrating a second goal just three minutes later had Saints not squandered a great counter. Smith rushed into the Dumbarton half but failed to pick out Mallan would who have been left one-on-one with Alan Martin in the Sons goal.  

It could've proved costly on the 20 minute mark when Sons were almost level. A teasing ball into the box by Robert Thomson was nearly turned into the net by Irvine as he scooped the ball over the bar. 

The visitors would find themselves level around 15 minutes later when loanee Lewis Vaughan finished neatly from the edge of the box after getting on the end of a long ball forward.

And yet the Buddies could have been back in front mere minutes later when Stephen McGinn was fouled inside the area. The skipper was pulled back by Barr leaving the referee with no hesitation as he pointed to the penalty spot. Rory Loy stepped up, having scored one in the win over Queen of the South a few weeks ago, but after a long delay saw his attempt pushed away by Martin. 

Half Time: St Mirren 1-1 Dumbarton

St Mirren came out after the interval in the mood with Stelios winning a free kick in 'Mallan territory' just eight seconds into the second period. It was indeed Mallan who took the set piece, watching as his curled effort was beaten away by the goalkeeper. 

McGinn then made the keeper work with a curled shot from 20 yards out, but it was ultimately easy enough for Martin to gather. 

Martin's contemporary, Billy O'Brien was forced into the next save as he dived low to his right to deny Andy Stirling. 

It was a pretty even game with both sides having a fair split of the possession without creating many clear cut chances. However, an opening fell to Mallan who looked certain to put St Mirren 2-1 ahead when he let fly with a rocket of an effort from the edge of the box only to see Martin tip it over the cross bar. 

Both sides were still trying to find a winner and Dumbarton fans thought that they had netted a second when Stirling's 80th minute free kick went just wide. 

Ex-Dumbarton midfielder Josh Todd almost got his first goal for St Mirren when he forced a good save from Martin. 

Ultimately it was not to be for Saints with Adam Eckersley picking up a second booking for a late challenge on Stirling going into stoppage time. 

But while a draw may not have been what Saints were after before the match, the Buddies have finally hauled themselves off the bottom of the table and give themselves a good chance of escaping relegation. 

Full Time: St Mirren 1-1 Dumbarton 

St Mirren: O'Brien, Irvine, Baird, MacKenzie, Eckersley, Magennis (Todd 82) , Mallan, McGinn, Stelios (Sutton 57), Smith, Loy (Gordon 90)
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Quinn, Storie, Fjelde

Dumbarton: Martin, McCrorie, Buchanan, Carswell, Thomson, Stanton, Harvie, Barr, Smith, Stirling, Vaughan (Nade 76)
Subs Not Used: Ewings, Lang, Gallagher, Prior, Nuttall

Referee: Steven Kirkland
Assistant Referee: David Roome
Assistant Referee: Liam Butler

Attendance: 3,906

Saints make one change to the side that defeated Ayr United last week as Gary Irvine replaces the injured Lewis Morgan.

The 32 year-old full back missed last week's win over the Honest Men due to suspension, but returns to his right back berth following the injury suffered by winger Lewis Morgan. 

Kick-off is at 3pm and we'll have all the action covered on our official Twitter and Facebook pages. Supporters outside the UK & Ireland can watch the match live on smfcuws.tv 

St Mirren: O'Brien, Irvine, Baird, MacKenzie, Eckersley, Magennis, Mallan, McGinn, Stelios, Smith, Loy
Subs: Langfield, Gordon, Quinn, Sutton, Storie, Fjelde, Todd

St Mirren in the Community are delighted to confirm that the SMiSA Panda Club will be open as usual for Saturday’s Ladbrokes Championship fixture against Dumbarton at The Paisley 2021 Stadium.

The SMiSA Panda Club will open at 1:00pm on Saturday. Parents please note that you should pick up your kids after the final whistle from the community office at 5:00pm.

For further information about the SMiSA Panda Club or to book your place at the next SMiSA Panda Club match day please contact Stephen Gallacher by e-mail at stephen.gallacher@stmirren.com.

Panda Club details for Saturday’s game are as follows:

St Mirren v Dumbarton
Saturday 8th April 2017
1:00pm – 5:00pm

To find out more about the Panda Club click here

St Mirren play host to Dumbarton tomorrow as Stephen Aitken's side make the short trip across the Erskine Bridge to take on Saints in the Ladbrokes Championship.

The Buddies could climb off the bottom of the table with a win tomorrow if other results go their way. It would be a huge moment for the side that have been rooted to the bottom since September. And with survival the main goal, the Saints are giving themselves a good chance of beating the drop with a fine run of form. 

The team have won five of their last seven league games - the most recent a thumping 6-2 win over ninth placed Ayr United last weekend. It's a run that sees Saints undefeated in their last four league matches at the Paisley 2021 Stadium. 

Stephen Aitken's Sons are also on a decent run with two wins from their last four. They defeated relegation rivals Raith 4-0 at home before enjoying a 1-0 victory over promotion chasing Morton last week. They travel to Paisley undefeated against Saints this season - coming out on top once, while drawing the other two.  

The first meeting came back in September when Ryan Hardie's first half header earned St Mirren a point after Andy Stirling had put Dumbarton ahead at the Cheaper Insurance Direct Stadium. 

The Sons travelled to Paisley in November, leaving with all three points when a mistake from Jamie Langfield allowed Garry Fleming to strike for the visitors. It was a result that saw Saints lose ground at the bottom, falling six points behind Dumbarton.

Saints made the trip to Dumbarton in February with a new look squad following Jack Ross' squad revamp in the January transfer window. Things were looking good for the Buddies when David Clarkson put them ahead on 35 minutes after getting on the end of a Cammy Smith cross.

Dumbarton hit back through Christian Nade before Harry Davis put Saints ahead for a second time. But again the hosts fought back with Robert Thomson scoring to level with 10 minutes to go. 

St Mirren's last win over Dumbarton came at the Paisley 2021 Stadium in February last year with Saints narrow 1-0 victors.

Saints will be without Lewis Morgan after his injury in the win over Ayr United last week. That could see Josh Todd make a start against his former club. The Englishman has only started once for the Saints since leaving Dumbarton in January, but climbed off the bench last week to help set up the sixth goal. 

While Saints could also come up against two familiar faces with Stuart Carswell and Calum Gallagher in the Dumbarton squad. The pair were signed for St Mirren by Ian Murray and played at the Paisley 2021 Stadium last season with Carswell leaving in the summer and Gallagher going in January of this year. Garry Fleming, so often the scourge of the Saints in recent meetings between the sides, misses out due to suspension, but Sons will be able to call on Nade who returns from him ban. 

A win, and the opportunity to come off the bottom with just five matches remaining, would be a huge psychological boost for the Buddies. For Dumbarton, they know a win could effectively secure their Championship status for next season. It's all set up to be a tasty encounter at the Paisley 2021 Stadium tomorrow. 

Youth academy prospect Conor O'Keefe has signed a new one-year contract extension with the St Mirren U20s. 

The 18 year-old has impressed for the young Buddies this season and will look to follow the likes of Stevie Mallan, Lewis Morgan, Jack Baird and Kyle Magennis in making the step up from the academy to the first team.

Allan McManus, Head of the St Mirren Youth Academy, said: "Conor has shown a lot of real quality at times this season. There's still a lot of things in the game that we need to work on with him, but he's shown to me that he deserves another year. 

Technically Conor has all the attributes to play at a good level. When he is on his game he can be unplayable at times and the key for us is working together to make that quality he has is produced on a more regular basis. 

"The most important thing is that he continues to push hard and try to push to be in and around the first team more next season. 

"I'm fortunate enough to have a very good and close relationship with the manager and we speak every single day about how the younger ones are doing and who deserves to come up."

The midfielder made his first team bow as a substitute in the IRN-BRU Cup final loss to Dundee United and Allan believes that should drive him on to be involved more often next season.

It was fantastic for him to get on the pitch, especially at that age and that should make Conor even more hungry to be in and around the first team on a more regular basis."

Jack Ross says it would be a "brilliant reward" for everyone involved with the club if St Mirren can avoid relegation to League One. 

The Buddies come into tomorrow's all important clash with Dumbarton in fine form having won five of the last seven league matches and sitting just one point behind Ayr United with a game in hand.

It's a far cry from the last time the side faced the Sons, when a 2-2 draw at the Cheaper Insurance Direct Stadium in February saw Saints seven points adrift. 

And while he's first to admit that there is still a lot of work to be done before St Mirren are safe, he claims his faith in the side has never wavered and he can feel the belief from the players that they can stay up.

The belief for me has never changed," he said. "But now what I have got is a group of players who believe it. You can feel it, it's tangible within the dressing room. I feel as if we will continue to win games as long as we keep playing the same way and the only way we will keep playing the same way is if we continue to work as hard. 

"The players have had to work incredibly hard to be alive and kicking at this stage of the season and the one thing that we haven't done - not because of our form and results, but because of the way other teams have performed - is that we've not managed to get off that bottom spot.

"I would happily take getting off the last two spots in the 90th minute of the last game of the season, but I feel as if we are good enough to do it prior to. If we do it I think it would be a brilliant reward for everybody at the club."

The gaffer was speaking to stmirren.com after being awarded the Ladbrokes Championship Manager of the Month for March. However, he was keen to stress that it was an award not just for himself, but for the players, his staff and the supporters who he believes were integral to him picking up the accolade. 

He said: "You still get satisfaction from any personal achievements in football, whether that is a man of the match award or player of the year award or whatever it might be. So it's nice but it's very much a reflection upon what the players have done on the pitch and what my staff do on a daily basis to help me. James and Allan in particular providing me with a lot of support with training and on a match day. 

"They [the supporters] have played an equal part in it. I said a few months ago about trying to rebuild that connection and once you do that everybody should feel a part of any success you have or any plaudits you receive. When people have been complimentary of us recently as a team, that should be reflective of the whole club.

"I'd like to very much thank them for their support because they play a huge part, home and away, in terms of how the players have played.

"I feel as if we have made progress," he continued. "I feel as if we have made steps forward. We have 100 steps still to take forward in terms of where I want to take the club and some of them are very much small ones we need to take this season. But I think anybody that comes to our ground at the moment can feel it. Letters I've received and emails and so on from fans tell me that they are very much enjoying their football and the players are enjoying playing for them.

"It wasn't that long ago that it was a difficult environment to play here. I'm not criticising the supporters for that, we weren't producing good enough performances on the park. But the whole mix and relationship was wrong so we have to continue to build that, continue to improve that, continue to strengthen it because if you do it's a great mix and it's powerful. 

"I think it was low for a variety of reasons and it's dangerous when it gets to that point because it can almost bottom out and I think we weren't far away from that. We've had to kind of claw our way back. It's been hard work and I will only be satisfied when we do this first part of this job which is maintaining our place in the league. Then the hard work begins again because that that's the first stage for us, if you like, and then it becomes about building.

"The priority is still very much staying in the league this season and we've still got a lot of hard work to ensure it."

Saints have failed to defeat Dumbarton this season and the manager expects the Sons to be tricky opponents once again. Stephen Aitken's side make the short journey across the Erskine Bridge as the highest away scorers in the league and Ross admits the team have to be wary of that threat.

I think it is a difficult match for a number of reasons. Their recent form is good, some of the results they have produced over the course of the season is excellent. They have some really good players in the final third. Their wide players are comfortable coming into narrow areas so defensively we are going to have to be strong.

"I expect it to be a hugely difficult and challenging game, but with our recent form at home we have to go in with that belief that we can win it."

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 Championship match against Dumbarton, is a 48 pager with a £3 cover price.

The latest edition includes the following:

Front Cover – Rory Loy.
The Gaffer - St Mirren manager Jack Ross with his thoughts on recent matches and his pre-match message for the fans.
Buddies News Update – News of the latest happenings in and around the Paisley 2021 Stadium.
Last Time Out – Match report and pictures of last Saturday's Championship match against Ayr United.
Football, Bloody Hell – Alan Gallacher looks at the mellowing over the years of 'The Special One' - Jose Mourinho.
The Opposition – Brian Corry gives the lowdown on Saturday's visitors, Stephen Aitken's Dumbarton side.
Hall of Fame – David Cochran highlights the St Mirren career of manager Alex Wright.
Player Interview – Stuart Gillespie chats to Cammy Smith.
Action Shot (Centre Pages) – Striker Rory Loy.
St Mirren Supporters Trust – John White updates on the latest happenings from SMiSA.
Fans Corner – Ticket prices, travel clubs update, match info and dates for fans to keep in their diary.
Championship Round-Up – A look back at week 30 of the Ladbrokes Championship season.
Saints in the Community – The latest info from the St Mirren in the Community team.
Last Time Here – A pictorial look back at Dumbarton's last visit to Paisley on league business on 5th November.
Kit Sponsors 2016/17.
Marketing Matters – Commercial Manager, Campbell Kennedy brings us up to date with all the commercial activities within the Club.
St Mirren Fixtures & Results 2016/17 – A handy reference page of all the fixtures 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 2016/17 season click HERE.

If you live outside the UK & Ireland, St Mirren TV is your way to watch Paisley’s top football side 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 Paisley 2021 Stadium when Dumbarton are the visitors on Saturday afternoon.

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

St Mirren v Dumbarton
Ladbrokes Championship
Venue: Paisley 2021 Stadium, Paisley
Date: Saturday 8th April 2017
Kick-off: 3:00pm BST

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

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 MALLAN’.

With 10 minutes of the game remaining all the votes will be counted then Stadium Announcer Phil Clark 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.

So get yourself ready on the hour mark of Saturday’s game against Dumbarton and get voting with #SMFCMOM.