DANNY LENNON is able to dangle a sizeable carrot in front of his St Mirren players to help coax them towards March 17.
That is just as well given he very nearly accused them of playing like donkeys in the aftermath of last week's defeat by Hibernian, a result which kept the Paisley club anchored at second bottom of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League table.
A win over St Johnstone this afternoon would only be enough to lift them into 10th. It is a modest ambition and not one which seems to fit a side which will contest the Scottish Communities League Cup final against Hearts next month. Lennon has not been inclined to tailor his ambitions, either, and the St Mirren manager still speaks expectantly about breaking into the top six before the league splits after the next 10 matches. It is a window in which he wants to see his side close a seven-point gap on sixth place.
A defeat by Hibs a week ago was no way to start building a sense of momentum, then, and as a result Lennon has been moved to remind his players that they better have found their stride by the time they head of Hampden for the final. The effect of allowing their performance to dip again this afternoon does not bear thinking about.
"We have cup final places to play for but the standard of football last week was certainly not our best and not acceptable for important games coming up," said the St Mirren manager. "The players know that and will look to rectify it [today]. We have bad days but to get nine or 10 players under-performing is very unusual."
It seems likely that Steve Lomas will have expected to demand a similar response from his players yesterday, only for his players to have changed the tone of their preparations by subduing Celtic in midweek. Still, the St Johnstone manager has been able to adopt a similar line to Lennon; seeing his cup final and raising him five more. The Northern Irishman has guided his side into fifth place and is confident that wins on each of their next six outings will be enough to put them beyond the reach of the likes of St Mirren.
"Okay, they are second-bottom but they will be thinking that they can get closer to us," said Lomas. "The next six games are our six cup finals. We have as good a chance as anybody of making the top six but you have to win games because look at the other teams; Dundee United are in good form as are Kilmarnock, St Mirren and Aberdeen, and Motherwell are getting wins."
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