St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson says he already has \u201cprobably nine out of 11\u201d of his team in mind as the Buddies prepare to face Celtic in Sunday\u2019s Premier Sports Cup Final at Hampden.<\/p>\n
Saints take on Celtic on Sunday 14th December, with kick-off at 3.30pm, aiming to lift the trophy for just the second time in the club\u2019s history.<\/p>\n
Robinson confirmed that midfielder Mark O\u2019Hara has returned to training after six weeks out but admitted the final may come too soon for him to start.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, he has trained,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cWe were waiting last week to see the reaction of the second injection and that looks like it\u2019s helped. Whether this game comes maybe a little bit too soon, we don\u2019t know yet. He has been out six weeks so it may just be a game too soon.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be a huge call for me to start Mark after six weeks out and three days training.\u201d<\/p>\n
There is also a doubt over Malik, who picked up an injury in training.<\/p>\n
\u201cMalik pulled up with an injury today, so it\u2019s a wee bit of a doubt for us,\u201d Robinson confirmed.<\/p>\n
There was more positive news elsewhere, with Liam Donnelly coming through training again, while goalkeeper Shamal George trained despite recently dealing with a sickness bug.<\/p>\n
\u201cShamal had a sickness bug, but he trained today,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cOther than Mark and Malik, we\u2019re probably at full strength.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robinson said preparations for the final have been kept as normal as possible, with players keen to avoid any extra fuss in the build-up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe players wanted to keep it as normal as possible,\u201d he said. \u201cThey didn\u2019t want pre-match fuss. They wanted to treat it as a normal game and then afterwards that\u2019s where the special occasion happens if you manage to get a result.\u201d<\/p>\n
The St Mirren manager rejected any suggestion that Celtic are vulnerable despite being in a transition period under a new manager.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot at all,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cThey\u2019ve got top quality players, top quality players. I would not ever use the word vulnerable with a top side like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, Robinson insists his side go into the final with belief, pointing to how close Saints have run Celtic this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver three games we\u2019ve been very, very competitive without having the end product,\u201d he said. \u201cThe goal on Sunday is can we have that level of performance and can we have the end product.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robinson also praised the backing Saints will receive at Hampden, with more than 13,000 St Mirren supporters set to make the trip.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe average about 6,000 at home, so that is a fantastic turnout,\u201d he said. \u201cHopefully we gain a few more fans from it with a good performance on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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