Marcus Fraser insists his Buddies have to take the harsh criticism they faced after their defensive horror show against Motherwell on the chin.
That’s because there’s no time to wallow in self pity as they welcome defending champions Rangers to Paisley on Sunday for a game he feels they need to win whatever happens in the top six race this weekend.
A top half finish may already be out of St Mirren’s reach come kick-off at the SMISA Stadium, depending on how results go elsewhere around the country involving the other teams fighting for the remaining spots.
A victory may yet be enough to send Saints into the top six, and Fraser revealed he and his teammates have been working on a game plan devised by manager Stephen Robinson to “exploit” and "hurt" Rangers.
Gio van Bronckhorst’s side visit the SMISA Stadium having suffered rare back-to-back defeats against Celtic and Braga.
Fraser told Renfrewshire Live Sport: “When we came in at the start of the week everyone was gutted. We knew Motherwell was a game we wanted and needed to win.
“But we’ve got enough experience in our dressing room to say that’s gone now and we just need to look at what’s ahead of us.
“Our full focus this week has been on Sunday’s game against Rangers.
“We conceded four goals against Motherwell, so we have to take the harsh words we got on the chin.
“We know as a defence and a whole team that’s not good enough. If you concede four in any game you don’t give yourself much of a chance.
“As an experienced player myself, along with the rest of the whole team, we know we need to take it on the chin and hopefully we can improve this weekend.
“We’ve always got hope going into games, especially at home. We’re not going to turn up and let Rangers win the game easy, that’s for sure.
“We’re going to stamp our authority on the game and when chances come we will need to take them, because they’re a good side with good players.
“But we have good players too. The manager has come up with a game plan, how he thinks we can hurt them and exploit them, and we’ll be looking to carry that out.
“If we defend well and get a chance from a set piece, or a shot from distance again like last time, it’s up to us to take it.”
With relegation-threatened St Johnstone now also breathing down their necks, Fraser admits Stephen Robinson’s side need points whatever front they’re fighting on come Sunday.
He’s hoping St Mirren still have a chance to pull off a first top flight top half finish since 1985 come kick-off for their final game before the split.
Fraser said: “The other games play before we do on Sunday, so we’ll need to just sit back and watch them and see how it goes.
“But to be honest it’s not going to change the mindset too much.
"We want to go out and win the game anyway, whether that’s to go into that top six or to go and finish the best of the rest.
“No matter what happens on Saturday, our incentive is to go and win the game in front of our supporters.”
