2/10
LEAGUE: 12th, 30pts (8th - 39pts)
SCOTTISH CUP: Fourth round
LEAGUE CUP: Third round
MOST USED FIRST XI: Mark Ridgers, Jason Naismith, Jim Goodwin, Marc McAusland, Jeroen Tesselaar, Stephen Mallan, John McGinn, Kenny McLean, Sean Kelly, Thomas Reilly, Steven Thompson
OVERVIEW: After flirting with the idea of relegation for a few seasons, St. Mirren finally went all the way in 2014-15; from the word go they were poor enough that they deserved it; the only question was whether there an even weaker team might finish below them. But Motherwell and Ross County both had springtime bounces that left the Buddies miles adrift and it quickly became a question of when, not if, their demotion would be confirmed. The board's decision to chuck Danny Lennon last summer was not unreasonable; replacing him with assistant Tommy Craig, whilst claiming new ideas were needed, was shortsighted and lazy, and his unsuitability was apparent long before his December dismissal. Replacing him with novice Gary Teale was not the sort of ambitious move the club required if they were to stay up. Whilst he wasn't dreadful, it's no surprise he has been punted for next season.
HIGH POINTS: These aren't easy to find. A smash-and-grab win in Dingwall in January, with ten men, erroneously convinced some that there was some team spirit. The best win of the season, against Kilmarnock, came with them already pretty much doomed.
LOW POINTS: Coming into the last two pre-split games, against closest relegation rivals Motherwell and Ross County, the Buddies weren't completely doomed. They only went and lost the two matches 0-5 and 0-3, and on live TV too. That tells you a lot about the quality, and attitude, of the squad.
STAR MAN: Kenny McLean, even though he signed for Aberdeen at the end of January; Teale had huge joy deploying him just off a lone striker and, as soon as he left, it all came crashing down again. The rest of the senior players were generally so poor that none deserve consideration.
ONE FOR THE FUTURE: The one bright spark of the second half of the campaign was little Stephen Mallan, who won goal of the season for a terrific solo strike at Dundee, and finished the campaign with a screamer against Motherwell. His running style reminds me of Gazza, and his ability is sufficient that it isn't completely crazy that he could eventually emulate the same player.
WASTE OF SPACE: The French striker Yoann Arquin was signed in January after leaving Ross County. He managed more red cards (two - though one was later rescinded) than goals (zero). He didn't look at all interested, though it didn't help that Teale had no idea of how to use him.
THE BOSS: No-one will ever employ Craig as a manager again; Teale might get another shot in the future, but not here. It's now down to Ian Murray, brought in from Dumbarton, to rebuild. Murray has managed in the Championship for two and a half seasons, despite being only 33, and so he knows all about this level and is considered one of the best young managers on the go.
PROSPECTS FOR NEXT SEASON: Being back in the second tier after nine straight top flight seasons is bad enough, but having to fight Hibernian and Rangers to get back out of it? Ouch. The presence of those two clubs, plus local rivals Morton, should do their attendances no harm, at least. But it's going to be tough, especially as the board, desperate to sell, aren't going to rush to invest much in the playing squad. We may not see them back in the Premiership for a good while.
FIRST TEAMERS DEFINITELY LEAVING: Yoann Arquin, Callum Ball, Adam Brown, James Dayton (end of loan), Emmanuel Sonupe (end of loan), Viktor Genev, Marian Kello, Marc McAusland, Isaac Osbourne, Gary Teale, Jeroen Tesselaar, Mo Yaqub
Lawrie Spence (LS) has ranted and spouted his ill-informed opinions on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.
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