Preview: St Johnstone vs. Hibernian - prediction, team news, lineups

St Johnstone, victorious in the League Cup final over Livingston last weekend, return to Scottish Premiership business when they welcome Hibernian to Perth on Saturday.

Third-placed Hibs will be looking to bounce back from a surprising 2-0 home defeat to Motherwell last weekend.

Match preview

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St Johnstone can claim to be the second-most successful club in Scotland over the last decade now, thanks to their 1-0 victory over Livingston in the League Cup final at Hampden Park last weekend.

Skipper Jason Kerr now hopes that the momentum from that glory in Glasgow can propel the Perth Saints to a top-six finish this season.

If that is to happen there is still much work to be done, with the Perth club currently in eighth place in the table with 34 points, five behind sixth-placed St Mirren.

The victory in the final was achieved thanks to Shaun Rooney's solitary goal of the game, and now Saints boss Callum Davidson is touting the right-back as a possible Scotland international.

Rooney scored in the quarter-final and the semi-final as well as the final and has been an impressive performer for the Perth club over the course of the campaign.

The Saints followed on from their League Cup glory with a 1-1 draw at Hamilton Academical in midweek.

A late strike from Guy Melamed secured a point for Davidson's team, but the manager will want a more assured display from his team against Hibs.

Jack Ross's Hibs were beaten 2-0 at home by Motherwell last weekend, a result that brought an end to a four-game winning run.

The Leith outfit have climbed into third place in the table in recent weeks on the back of that form and Aberdeen's indifferent run.

They are now four points clear of the Dons with a game in hand, although Ross will know that things can soon change after the league splits into two halves soon.

That means that they need to regain some momentum with this trip to McDiarmid Park and Ross will want to see improvement from last week's below-par performance.

The Hibs fans have certainly remained loyal despite not being able to watch their team. Fan donations have this week allowed the club to make improvements to their performance analysis and GPS systems.

Ross will surely appreciate any possible edge he can gain as he looks to steer his team to finish in third.

St Johnstone Scottish Premiership form:

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St Johnstone form (all competitions):

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Hibernian Scottish Premiership form:

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Team News

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St Johnstone fan-favourite Murray Davidson will continue the absence from the Saints lineup that saw him miss the League Cup final last weekend.

The midfielder has a calf injury that looks likely to keep him out of action for much of March.

Callum Davidson has no other injury or suspension concerns ahead of this weekend's game.

Hibs manager Ross has acknowledged that he could be missing "three or four" players this weekend without being too specific about who could be out.

He also stated that his team could be at full strength, as he anticipates that some of the injured players will play through the pain barrier.

Josh Doig missed last weekend's defeat to 'Well and he has not trained this week, according to his manager.

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:

Clark; Kerr, Gordon, McCart; Rooney, McCann, Craig, Booth; Conway, Wotherspoon; Kane

Hibernian possible starting lineup:

Marciano; McGinn, McGregor, Hanlon; Cadden, Irvine, Newell, Stevenson; Murphy; Boyle, Doidge

We say: St Johnstone 1-2 Hibernian

Hibs should manage to come away from their trip to Perth with three points, and cement their grip on third place.

Ross's team will be well-motivated to win after last week's defeat, and they look like having too much quality for the Perth Saints to handle on Saturday.