St Johnstone, looking to build on their recent winning run, are set to take on Scottish Championship strugglers Hamilton Academical in round five of the Scottish FA Cup on Saturday afternoon.
The hosts defeated Motherwell 1-0 to progress to this round, while the visitors dramatically defeated Musselburgh Athletic FC 3-1 in their fourth round tie.
Match preview
© Imago
St Johnstone have endured challenging times in the Scottish Premiership in recent years, fighting against the drop in each of the last three seasons, with another relegation battle looming this term.
The Saints are currently bottom of the table with just 21 points after 25 matches, from six wins, three draws and 16 losses, leaving them six points behind 10th-placed Dundee.
Former manager Craig Levein was dismissed after securing just one win in the first five league matches, with the Saints drawing one and losing two under an interim boss before Simo Valakari was appointed as the new permanent manager.
After winning his first two matches in charge, Valakari's men went on a run of just one win in the following 13 outings, alongside 10 defeats and two draws.
However, they have improved over their past outings, securing three successive victories across all competitions, a streak they will be hoping to maintain in this one.
Despite their struggles, they will be favourites to secure a comfortable victory on Saturday afternoon, with Hamilton Academical fighting against relegation from the Scottish Championship.
The Accies, who secured promotion from Scottish League One last term, are currently ninth in the Scottish Championship standings with 21 points from their 22 matches played.
They have recorded six wins, three draws and 13 defeats from their league fixtures, leaving them trailing eight-placed Dunfermline by a point, though Hamilton do have a game in hand.
John Rankin's side have endured three straight defeats in their last outings, failing to score in any of those games and conceding eight goals, leaving them low on confidence heading into this one.
Team News
The hosts will be unable to call upon the services of both Uche Ikpeazu (unspecified) and Sam McClelland (Achilles tendon) due to ongoing injury issues.
St Johnstone have won all of their last three matches heading into this one, meaning Valakari may opt to name a largely unchanged starting 11 on Saturday.
As for Hamilton Academical, three successive defeats without a goal scored means that Rankin is likely to make several changes to his starting team for this one.
Oli Shaw could start behind Kevin O'Hara in attack, while Sean McGinty is expected to partner Dylan McGowan in central defence after the departure of Scott Martin to Partick Thistle.
St Johnstone possible starting lineup:
Fisher; Sprangler, Mikulic, Douglas; Curtis, Holt, Watt, Wright; Carey, Griffith; Kirk
Hamilton Academical possible starting lineup:
Lyness; Tumilty, McGowan, McGinty, Hendrie; Barjonas, Maguire; Smith, Shaw, McKinstry; O'Hara
We say: St Johnstone 2-0 Hamilton Academical
The hosts will be boosted by their recent upturn in form, while the visitors are sure to be low on confidence given their run of three losses, and we believe St Johnstone will win again here.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
