Part of the reason for the win last time out at Love Street was due to the change in formation. The 3-5-2 worked superbly, allowing Jack Ross to play further forward and make up for our lack of a right winger. It also allowed us to play all three of Scott Cuthbert, Will Haining and John Potter - a relatively strong defensive line. The only disappointment was Andy Dorman who, having been moved into a more central role, was pretty poor - although he lacked fitness. On the whole, the formation worked well and Saints boss Gus MacPherson will hopefully stick with it tomorrow.
Everyone who played in the win against Rangers should still be fit and available for selection tomorrow, so it's likely that if we stick with the same formation we'll stick with the same players. Jim Hamilton has shrugged off an injury worry and should make the squad against his own team, while Tom Brighton and David Barron are out with knocks. Franco Miranda has completed his suspension but his return to the side would involve a change in formation (unless Steven Robb is dropped) so he may have to make do with a place on the bench.
One possible change could be a starting place for Stephen McGinn, who scored the famous goal against Rangers. However, that would involve dropping Dorman or Garry Brady and the latter's impressive form makes that unlikely. Up front, top scorer Billy Mehmet will keep his place and is likely to be partnered once more by Dennis Wyness, although Craig Dargo scored for the reserves during the week.
Hamilton were tipped as relegation favourites before the season started, purely because they were the new boys after winning last season's first division title. Their early form, however, has shown those predictions to be rather foolish. They won their first two games and also beat Aberdeen away from home to get off to the perfect start, although have suffered some heavy defeats in their last two games. Tomorrow's game is the sort of match they'll see as the perfect opportunity to put their recent woes behind them.
Saints could come up against former player Mark Corcoran tomorrow. The winger left Love Street in the summer but has found first team appearances hard to come by, which is a bit strange considering that's why he left us! On his day, he can produce some dazzling performances and is probably relishing the prospect of facing his former team. Other players to watch out for are talented youngster James McCarthy and forward Richard Offiong, who scored a shedload of goals as the Accies won promotion last year.
Games between Saints and teams managed by Billy Reid are usually rather tight affairs and I think this one will be decided by a single goal - scored against us by Mark Corcoran.