"That was for my dad." This was the emotional tribute from Alex Greive as the Saints striker dedicated his second half strike against Hibs to his late father.
The Buddies forward was given compassionate leave by the Paisley club in December after the 23-year-old's dad sadly passed away suddenly.
The New Zealand international returned home to be with his family following the tragic news, with teammate Declan Gallagher dedicating St Mirren 's 3-1 win against Aberdeen on Christmas Eve to Greive.
The forward netted his first goal since December in Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Hibs at Easter Road.
And he revealed his poignant point to the sky after he beat David Marshall was to his late father.
Greive told Renfrewshire Live Sport: "Yes, that was for my dad.
"It was a tough moment halfway through the year losing him. That one is for him."
The Buddies pushed for a late leveller in Leith after Greive halved the deficit but couldn't find an equaliser, with Hibs ultimately seizing the initiative in the race for a European spot.
Greive believes the Saints gave themselves too much to do in the second half, but was pleased with the reaction after a positive half-time team talk from boss Stephen Robinson.
He said: "It was a little bit too late. We gave ourselves an uphill battle with a few mistakes in the first half.
“But it wasn’t necessarily a bad start collectively - just one or two mistakes. It’s exactly how you don’t want to start a game.
"That was frustrating, but I think after the second goal - and in the second half as a whole - we reacted really well and were unlucky not to get a point.
“We gave ourselves too much to do. At half-time the manager, to be fair, was positive.
“He said there wasn’t much between the two sides, it was two mistakes and he just wanted a reaction from us which I think he got.”
With St Mirren striker Tony Watt now ruled out for the rest of the season after damaging his ankle ligaments, the door has opened for Greive to nail down a spot in the starting XI.
He's determined to make the most of that opportunity alongside Curtis Main, adding: “I hopefully can get a run of games. Obviously I don’t want to wish any team-mate injured, but this does give me a chance and I will hopefully take that chance for the rest of the season.
“Personally, the season has been a bit frustrating. I feel I started quite well and had a stretch where I didn’t score and probably should’ve scored.
“So it’s nice to get one. I’ve learned a lot through this season.
“Playing with Maino suits me well. We had a spell where we played together at the end of last season as well and I think we did alright. We’ve got a good relationship and it’s nice to have someone to play off like that.”
READ MORE:
Don't miss the latest Renfrewshire headlines – sign up to our free daily newsletter here
