A 63rd minute goal from Ryan Hardie wasn’t enough to spark a comeback for St Mirren after they went 3-0 down away to Raith Rovers. A first half goal from Declan McManus was the start of a bad day for the Saints which was only added to by Ross Callachan and a McManus second.

Hardie’s goal spurred on St Mirren but they couldn’t build on it and in the end it proved a consolation.

The match started brightly for the Saints as they had a corner within the first minute. Stephen Mallan was the player to send it in and it found Jason Naismith, whose header was held by Aaron Lennox in the Raith Rovers goal.

St Mirren continued their pressure in the opening exchanges, Jack Baird sending in a free kick which was played to Hardie, The man on loan saw his shot cannon back off a Raith defender and so started the home side’s pressure. Bobby Barr won Raith Rovers a free kick in a dangerous area and it was played into the Saints box. After a bit of head tennis, the ball was eventually cleared.

The ever influential Lewis Morgan got his first chance to make his mark on the game as he flew up the wing and cut the ball back to Lawrence Shankland who in turn cut past two defenders before unleashing his shot. However, Lennox managed to get his fingertips to it and see it out for a corner. While Lennox saved, Calum Gallagher went down and required attention.

Moments later, the deadlock was broken by McManus at the other end of the park. The ball was flicked on by Lewis Vaughan and McManus cut past the defence and lobbed the ball over Jamie Langfield.

Things got more difficult for the visitors as they had to make an early change. The knock Gallagher picked up forced him off and he was replaced by Tom Walsh.

Raith Rovers continued to attack and McManus was the main threat. He came close to his second after half an hour but he dragged his shot wide.

Next was the first penalty claim the Saints had. Mallan looked to be taken out in the box but nothing came of it and in the end captain Andy Webster was shown a yellow card after protesting.

Half-Time: Raith Rovers 1-0 St Mirren

Much like the first half, St Mirren were first to press in the second. Within minutes, they had a free kick. The ball was floated in and Hardie got on the end of it, however, his shot wasn’t strong enough to trouble Lennox.

The free kick was followed by a corner but the set pieces did not pay off as the Rovers countered and scored two in quick concession.

Straight from the Saints corner, Rovers streaked up the park and Ross Callachan doubled the lead. Only a minute later, McManus had his second. A mix up between Langfield and Webster allowed McManus to loop round the keeper and slot the ball into an open goal.

With 40 minutes left of the match, St Mirren searched for a way back into the game and the glimmer of hope came on the 63rd minute. The visitors won a throw in and Lawrence Shankland’s trademark long throw paid off. After several attempts to clear the ball by Raith, Hardie latched on to the end of it and turned it passed Lennox.

The Buddies continued their search for another goal and it looked like the opportunity came when there were claims of a handball in the box but the referee waved them away and play continued.

In the end there wasn’t enough time for St Mirren to bring it back.

Full-Time: Raith Rovers 3-1 St Mirren

Raith Rovers: Lennox, Thomson, McHattie, Callachan, M’voto, Bennedictus, Vaughan (Skacel 71), Barr, Matthews (Roberts 83), McManus (Stewart 78), Thompson.
Subs Not Used: Johnston, Osei, Coustrain, Cuthbert (GK).

St Mirren: Langfield, Naismith (Sutton 55), Webster, Baird, Irvine, Mallan (Clarkson 83), Gallagher (Walsh 23), Hutton, Morgan, Hardie, Shankland.
Subs Not Used: Gordon, O’Keefe, McDonald, Gallacher (GK).

Referee: Kevin Graham.
Assistant Referee: Joseph Lawson.
Assistant Referee: Steven Strang.

Attendance: 2,140 (477 St Mirren fans).

ST MIRREN chairman Gordon Scott has issued a challenge to everyone running in this weekend’s Paisley 10k Race.

If anyone wearing a Saints top beats him across the finishing line, he’ll give them a free ticket to the Buddies home game against Queen of the South on September 10.

And any youngster under the age of 17 wearing a St Mirren top who takes part in the Fun Run that follows the big race will also get free entry to the game.

Gordon, 52, is a keen runner and he’s taking part in his third Paisley 10k, on Sunday, August 21.

He said: “I’ve thrown down the gauntlet to all the runners in the Paisley 10k. Get the St Mirren tops on and let’s see if you can beat me in the big race.

“Anyone who runs the race with a Saints top on and who crosses the finishing line with a better time than me, I’ll give them a free ticket to see the Buddies take on Queen of the South.

“And as an incentive to all the kids taking part in the Fun Run, if they wear a Saints top during the race, they’ll get to see St Mirren for free as well.”

Gordon added: “I’ve not had a lot of time this year to train for the race, but in the past few weeks I’ve really upped the amount of running I’m doing.

“I’m certainly aiming to beat the 50-minute finish, so people will have to go some to get their free ticket to see the Saints.

“We’re giving away the free tickets to show that St Mirren is a community club and we support big community events like this.”

People have until noon on Friday, August 19 to register for the race by logging on to www.renfrewshireleisure.com, telephoning (0141) 842-3000 or picking up an entry form from any Renfrewshire Leisure venue.

And signing up for Gordon’s free ticket offer is easy! We’ll have people at the Last Post in County Square on Sunday from 9:00am to sign you up ahead of the 10:00am start and those participating in the fun run, which starts at 12:15pm, will have until 12:00pm to register.

We expect sign up to be busy so beat the queues by registering online now HERE. If you are already registered on the St Mirren ticketing system then you are all set.

We want you to take pictures of yourself in your St Mirren top on race day in County Square and send them into us via our social media channel and keep them handy when claiming your ticket.

We’ll announce Gordon’s race time on the website next week so you’ll be able to check if you’ve beaten him and won yourself a free ticket. If you are lucky enough to win yourself a free ticket you will have until Thursday 8th September to claim.

Please note that youngsters under 12 in the Fun Run who receive a free St Mirren ticket must be accompanied to the Queen of the South game by an adult.

The Black and White Magazine team are now actively seeking new members to add to what is a unique magazine in Scottish football.

The Black and White Magazine was first published in November 2000 and in August 2012 it was re-launched, since then it has dropped through the letterboxes of members on an eight weekly cycle adding up to six editions a year.

The Black and White magazine is published by the St Mirren Development Association and all funds raised go directly to the St Mirren Academy and Youth Development Programme.

While present members will be awaiting the delivery of their next issue it isn’t too late for you to become a member and receive that issue too.

For your membership you will get:

• St Mirren’s own full colour magazine posted direct to your home every 8 weeks
• Entry into our bi-monthly prize draw
• Entry to a Christmas bonus draw
• Entry to the close season bonus draw

For only £1 per week* you can become a Black and White magazine member and to get started you will need a standing order form which you can download by clicking HERE.

Once you print the form and fill it in you can either hand it in at the stadium’s main reception or send it to the following address:

Black & White Magazine
St Mirren Football Club
St Mirren Park
Greenhill Road
Paisley
PA3 1RU

For more details please send an e-mail to blackandwhitemag@stmirren.com.

* Memberships will be paid by standing order in sums of either £13 (quarterly) or £26 (half-yearly).

This coming Saturday, St Mirren play host to Hibernian in a Ladbrokes Championship match-up at the Paisley 2021 Stadium.

The following weekend Saints are on the road to face Ayr United then on 10th September it is back to Paisley for a Championship match against Queen of the South.

Tickets for both of the matches against Hibernian and Queen of the South are now on sale and the gate prices for the game at Ayr have been confirmed. The details are as follows:

St Mirren v Hibernian
Ladbrokes Championship
Venue: Paisley 2021 Stadium, Paisley
Date: Saturday 20th August 2016
Kick-off: 3:00pm

Season Tickets ARE valid for this game.

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

Tickets for this match are now on sale from the St Mirren Ticket Office and the Online Ticket Shop.

Ticket Prices

Main Stand (Padded Seats)

Adult – £22
OAP (over 65) – £12
Student – £12
Child (Under 18) – £12

Main Stand (Regular Seats)

Adult – £20
OAP (over 65) – £10
Student – £10
Child (Under 18) – £10
Child (Under 12) – £5
Unemployed – £10
Wheelchair User – £10
Carer – Free

West Stand

Adult – £20
OAP (over 65) – £10
Student – £10
Child (Under 18) – £10
Child (Under 12) – £5
Unemployed – £10
Wheelchair User – £10
Carer – Free

West College Scotland Family (South) Stand

Adult – £20
OAP (over 65) – £10
Student – £10
Unemployed – £10
Child (Under 18) – £5
Child (Under 12) – £2
Wheelchair User – £10
Carer – Free

North Stand (Away Fans)

Adult – £20
OAP (over 65) – £10
Child (Under 18) – £10
Child (Under 12) – £5
Wheelchair User – £10
Carer – FREE

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Ayr United v St Mirren
Ladbrokes Championship
Venue: Somerset Park, Ayr
Date: Saturday 27th August 2016
Kick-off: 3:00pm

This match will be pay-at-the-gate.

Gate Prices

Adult – £17
OAP – £10
Full-Time Students – £10
Under 16 – £5

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St Mirren v Queen of the South
Ladbrokes Championship
Venue: Paisley 2021 Stadium, Paisley
Date: Saturday 10th September 2016
Kick-off: 3:00pm

Season Tickets ARE valid for this game.

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

Tickets for this match are now on sale from the St Mirren Ticket Office and the Online Ticket Shop.

For ticket pricing please refer to St Mirren v Hibernian (20th August) fixture above.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

The St Mirren Ticket Office opening hours for the remainder of this week are as follows:

Mon, Aug 15th – 10:00am – 2:00pm
Tue, Aug 16th – 10:00am – 2:00pm
Wed, Aug 17th – 10:00am – 2:00pm
Thu, Aug 18th – 10:00am – 2:00pm
Fri, Aug 19th – 10:00am – 2:00pm
Sat, Aug 20th – 10:00am – 3:00pm (kick-off v Hibernian)

St Mirren Ticket Office Tel: (0141) 840-6130.

St Mirren Ticket Office E-Mail: tickets@stmirren.com.

Renfrewshire’s award-winning Street Stuff youth diversionary scheme has marked the end of its summer season – after recording more than 10,000 attendances during the holidays.

The popular programme runs year-round activities across the area including street football, dance and cheerleading classes, and a youth bus with video games, and has helped reduce crimes of youth disorder by 75% since since it started in 2009.

Street Stuff is run as a partnership between various bodies including Renfrewshire Council, St Mirren FC and Police Scotland.

And in addition to the normal timetable of early-evening activities, an extra programme of afternoon classes was run over the holiday period – including a free healthy meal for every child who attends.

The summer classes ran at six locations – the Paisley 2021 Stadium and Glenburn in Paisley, Bargarran in Erskine, Knockhill Park in Renfrew, Our Lady of Peace PS in Linwood and the McMaster Centre in Johnstone, with an estimated 170 kids a day.

The free meals and summer expansion was paid for by the council’s £6m Tackling Poverty Fund, which aims to help families and young people improve their prospects.

Councillor Eddie Devine, Renfrewshire Council’s Street Stuff champion, popped down to St Mirren to see some of the activities for himself, including football in the Airdome and dance classes in the new fan bar in the main stand.

While there, he helped present thank-you gifts to some of the catering staff who have worked hard all summer to co-ordinate the sizeable operation to feed the kids.

He said: "The Street Stuff programme has been making a huge difference to Renfrewshire for seven years now – and it continues to go from strength to strength.

"The extra money from the council’s Tackling Poverty Fund saw the scheme expanded to new locations and times this summer – by providing a healthy meal for every child we are helping ease the financial strain on low-income families.

"At the same time we are encouraging active lifestyles in a way which is proven to help keep kids out of trouble."

New St Mirren chairman Gordon Scott added: "It’s important to everybody at the club we be as involved in the Renfrewshire community as possible.

"Street Stuff is a wonderful example of major organisations from that community pulling together to make a big difference to people’s lives.

"In my short time as chairman it’s been very obvious St Mirren and Street Stuff work exceptionally well together. I hope to continue that and expand the great work it is doing.

"And it’s been brilliant to have the Street Stuff kids here over the summer – it’s a great use of the facilities we have at the stadium."

Street Stuff runs at more than 20 locations throughout Renfrewshire, six evenings a week. You can see the full timetable at Renfrewshire.gov.uk/streetstuff