PLAYERS GET SUNSHINE BOOST AHEAD OF POST-SPLIT FIXTURES

With the countdown to the post-split series of fixtures well and truly on, the Saints squad jetted out for a short break in Marbella yesterday afternoon.

Manager Steve Lomas hopes the sunshine break will help top-up energy levels at this late stage of the campaign and while it won’t all be sun-loungers and golf, the break is seen as a way of allowing players to rest weary limbs and boost energy levels. However, there will be more intense training for some of the players who have had limited first team involvement in recent weeks but who may well be called upon to play their part in those final five games.

The Tayside derby against Dundee United a week on Saturday will see Liam Craig and Jody Morris (pictured) watching from the stand as they serve one match suspensions and there is also the likelihood that Lee Croft will miss the game due to the hamstring injury he suffered against Inverness on Saturday past. That will require some or all of David Robertson, Kevin Moon and Jamie Adams to step up to the plate for the ESPN encounter.