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Scottish Premiership | Gameweek 2
Aug 7, 2021 at 3pm UK
The SMISA Stadium
HL

St Mirren
1 - 2
Hearts

Shaughnessy (85')
Main (90+2')
Dennis (86')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Halliday (16'), Boyce (73')
Haring (28'), Baningime (36')

Preview: St Mirren vs. Hearts - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: St Mirren vs. Hearts - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Saturday's Scottish Premiership clash between St Mirren and Hearts, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

Newly-promoted Hearts will be hoping to make it two wins out of two in the Scottish Premiership when they travel to St Mirren on Saturday afternoon.

The Jam Tarts claimed all three points when they beat Glasgow giants Celtic last weekend, while the spoils were shared between the Saints and Dundee in their opening game.


Match preview

St Mirren played out an entertaining 2-2 draw away at newly-promoted Dundee in their opening league game of the new season last weekend.

Eamonn Brophy scored his first goal for the club since arriving on a permanent basis this summer, but his fourth-minute strike was cancelled out on the stroke of half time when captain Joe Shaughnessy diverted the ball into his own net.

Jamie McGrath then converted from the penalty spot nine minutes after the restart before Dundee scored their second equaliser through Jason Cummings. Even though the hosts were reduced to 10 men, following Max Anderson's 69th minute red card, St Mirren were unable to capitalise with the extra man and had to settle for just a point at Dens Park.

Manager Jim Goodwin was "disappointed" not to come away with all three points against a promoted club, but his side do get a second bite of the cherry when they face last season's Championship winners Hearts on Saturday.

St Mirren have an impressive home record against the Jam Tarts in recent years, winning five and drawing three of their last eight meetings against them in Paisley. The Saints, however, claimed only four victories on home soil last season; only basement club Hamilton Academical claimed fewer home wins.

Hearts kicked off the new season in style with an impressive 2-1 victory against Celtic last weekend, in front of 5,500 fans at Tynecastle.

After their roaring supporters were presented with the Championship trophy for the first time since winning the title in April, the match got underway with Jam Tarts winger Gary Mackay-Steven scoring after eight minutes to put the hosts in front.

Anthony Ralston equalised for the Hoops shortly after the break but it was Hearts who had the last laugh, as defender John Souttar rose above the Celtic backline to head in a dramatic 89th minute winner.

Robbie Neilson was delighted with the performance and result, particularly for their returning fans who he claimed were the driving force behind their victory.

The Paisley-born head coach now prepares for a trip to St Mirren, which was in fact the club's last away visit to a team in the top-flight before their relegation in 2019-20.

Hearts were beaten 1-0 by the Saints in March that season, but a victory on Saturday would help them to continue their bright start to the new campaign, extending their winning run across all competitions to six games.

St Mirren Scottish Premiership form:
  • D

St Mirren form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • D

Hearts Scottish Premiership form:
  • W

Hearts form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W


Team News

St Mirren defenders Richard Tait and Conor McCarthy will be looking to force their way into the starting lineup this weekend, however both players are set to begin on the bench again, with Shaughnessy, Marcus Fraser and Charles Dunne expected to keep their places in the back three.

New recruits Alan Power and Greg Kiltie, who both joined from Kilmarnock this summer, could feature in midfield, with the latter hoping to make his first league start since his arrival.

Strikers Brophy and Curtis Main are set to partner each other up front again, with Kristian Dennis to start on the bench.

As for Hearts, Jamie Walker missed the victory against Celtic with an ankle injury but the winger is set to be in contention to play on Saturday.

Neilson has started with a 3-4-3 formation in four of their five competitive matches so far this campaign and he will likely use this system again in Paisley.

Wingers Mackay-Steven and Josh Ginnelly are both expected to support central striker Liam Boyce in attack, which will mean the likes of Armand Gnanduillet and Euan Henderson are set to begin on the bench.

St Mirren possible starting lineup:
Alnwick; Fraser, Shaughnessy, McCarthy; Henderson, McGrath, Power, Tanser; Kiltie; Main, Brophy

Hearts possible starting lineup:
Gordon, Souttar, Halkett, Kingsley; Smith, Baningime, Halliday, Cochrane; Ginnelly, Boyce, Mackay-Steven


We say: St Mirren 1-2 Hearts

St Mirren and Hearts have looked strong in front of goal so far this campaign, with both sides scoring 21 goals combined in their opening five games between the Premiership and the League Cup.

The two teams will be confident that they can claim all three points on Saturday and even though there is little to separate them, we feel that the Jam Tarts could keep their positive momentum going with a narrow victory in Paisley.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data




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Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
Championship Group
1Celtic000080265478
2RangersRangers000072234975
3Hearts000046341262
4Kilmarnock00004334951
5St Mirren00003843-543
6Dundee00004454-1041
Relegation Group
1Hibernian00004451-739
2Motherwell00004651-537
3Aberdeen00003549-1435
4St Johnstone00002446-2231
5Ross County00003256-2430
6Livingston00002259-3718
 
First Phase
1Celtic33246380265478
2RangersRangers33243672234975
3Hearts33195946341262
4Kilmarnock33131284334951
5St Mirren33127143843-543
6Dundee331011124454-1041
7Hibernian33912124451-739
8Motherwell33813124651-537
9Aberdeen33811143549-1435
10St Johnstone33710162446-2231
11Ross County3379173256-2430
12Livingston3339212259-3718
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