Saints are tripped up by tragedy of errors

Sep 2 2008 by Gordon Bannerman, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

INTERNATIONAL football has called a welcome time-out on the domestic scene, buying valuable time for Saints to restore key personnel and title ambitions which are in dire danger of disintegrating before the advent of autumn.

Livingston, seen off in Perth on opening day, now top the table after four straight wins.

During the same period, the victors that day have picked up a solitary point from 12 on offer, with a ghastly goals against column weighed down by a dirty dozen.

While Saints admirably hauled themselves back into contention from a two-goal deficit and looked odds-on to round-off the good work with a winner, another elementary error resulted in a calamitous defeat from a youthful Clyde team celebrating their first win of the season.

That’s two defeats already on home turf, where Saints fans are not accustomed to nil point verdicts.

Another three goals conceded overshadowed the positives and yet again the video tape inquiry will have individuals squirming in their seats.

Now daunting road trips beckon to Dumfries and Dingwall before Dundee come to town.

Goal number one, 70 seconds in and certain to knock the wind for Perth sails, was an utter fiasco.

Dave McKay must have a highly contagious disease.

Why else would he be given carte blanche to run fully 40 yards unchecked?

The Perth defence off and the winger found himself in the penalty area without a tackle to contend with.

Clyde players sensed the anxiety gripping home players feeling the heat and eight minutes from half-time the picture was even bleaker.

Teams are scoring for fun from corner kicks.

This made it five in three games, with vertically challenged Scott Gemmell leaping to head home a Waddell delivery into the six yard box with keeper Alan Main and home debutant Nick McKoy left glaring at each other.

Ironically, Saints revived their prospects from a corner, with McKoy knocking down Liam Craig’s cross for Stuart McCaffrey to confuse defenders with a sclaffed touch from four yards.

Midweek casualties Paul Sheerin and Derek Holmes came off the bench for Morgan and Andy Jackson.

They transformed the game, and not just because the wily midfielder’s cross picked out the centre for a 67th minute header. Sheerin’s impact was immediate, with two strikes alarming the Clyde keeper, although hesitation from Steven Anderson and then Gary Irvine should have been exploited by Clarke, who missed the target with a lob.

Irvine, however, was delivering decent cross and Holmes was on the end of most of them.

Craig – booked again – fired one wide and Steven Milne

nodded wide before being thwarted at the front post.

The tide was turning and another goal was on the cards.

But again Saints were undone by a basic defensive error.

Cue a daft Anderson barge on Clarke 20 yards out with no clear and present danger.

No one was surprised when Waddell’s strike from the standard tap routine winged a defender and flew high into the net.

Craig saw an inswinging corner cleared off the line.

But Main had to beat out a Clarke shot before the end was greeted by the inevitable dissent from the home stands as Saints endure their worst sequence since the opening weeks of season 2004/05.

St Johnstone: Main, Irvine, Morgan (Sheerin 46), McKoy (Milne 68), Anderson, McCaffrey, Millar, Hardie, Jackson (Holmes 46), Samuel and Craig. Subs not used: Swankie and McLean.

Clyde: Cherrie, Lowing, Ohnesorge, Gibson, Brown (Higgins 52), Kettlewell, McKay, MacLennan (Trouten 56), Clark, Gemmill and Waddell.

Subs not used: Murch and McLauchlin.

Referee: Eddie Smith.