MX23RW : Monday, December 23 23:12:39| >> :600:230148:230148:

Tommy Wright: 'St Johnstone have achieved a lot'

Tommy Wright: 'St Johnstone have achieved a lot'
© Reuters
Saints have set their sights on a seventh-placed finish.

Tommy Wright insists avoiding the worry of relegation from the Ladbrokes Premiership yet again is a "fantastic achievement" for St Johnstone.

The Perth club, who returned to the top flight in 2009/10 after a seven-year absence, finished eighth last season after enjoying six successive top-six finishes.

With three post-split fixtures remaining this term, Saints are sitting in seventh place, one point ahead of Motherwell and looking to finish the 'best of the rest'.

Wright told the club's official website: "We've achieved a lot as a club in recent years, but to have not been involved in any relegation battles since returning to the top flight is a fantastic achievement.

"There are some big clubs who have dropped down a division in that time but we've never once finished lower than eighth.

"It shows you just how well this club has done over that period of time.

"I know the chairman is extremely proud but the players, supporters and everyone connected to St Johnstone should be too.

"The season isn't over though and we want to finish strongly. I keep mentioning that seventh place is very important but aside from that personal pride comes into it too.

"A footballer should be looking to win every game he plays in, even friendlies.

"We will approach the final three games in the right manner as my players always do and hopefully we can have a strong end to a good season."

St Johnstone face Livingston on Saturday – the fourth meeting between the clubs this season and the third of 2019.

After two Saints victories, Gary Holt's men came out on top with a 3-1 win at the Tony Macaroni Arena in March after Joe Shaughnessy had given the visitors an early lead.

"I'm looking forward to getting back out there," said Wright.

"Our home record has been pretty good and we know we're more than capable of keeping that going tomorrow.

"It's going to be a difficult game as it has been in the previous three matches with Livingston this season. We have won twice but lost last time out.

"That was disappointing because it was a game of fine margins. We took the lead and had a great chance to go 2-0 up.

"Then we didn't deal with a situation and conceded a poor goal then didn't turn up at the start of the second half.

"We go into the game knowing a win goes a long way to helping secure seventh place for us and would guarantee us at least eighth.

"We're looking forward to it. We'll be looking to get on the front foot and take the game to Livingston."

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Press Association sport staff');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', 'c6e4acca-adb6-4540-b85d-77d54141796f');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Tommy Wright delighted with St Johnstone\u2019s progress'});

ID:358145: cacheID:358145:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5139:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
A general shot of a Premier League football ahead of the Premier League clash between Everton and West Ham United at Goodison Park on October 30, 2016
Read Next:
Kearney proud of St Mirren "mentality" with vital point
>
Read more about Tommy Wright Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Celtic1614204444044
2RangersRangers1611232891935
3Aberdeen17104331211034
4Motherwell178272327-426
5Dundee UnitedDundee Utd176742519625
6St Mirren187382429-524
7Dundee175482730-319
8Hibernian184682430-618
9Kilmarnock184681935-1618
10Hearts1844102027-716
11Ross County183691435-2115
12St Johnstone1842122134-1314


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!