As a football fan you have to learn to take the bad with the good, and as we covered the best games yesterday it is only right that we cover the worst games today. I'll spare Saints fans too many bad memories and only list the five worst.
5. Celtic 7-0 St. Johnstone, Scottish Premiership, 3rd August 2019
You might wonder why the biggest defeat of the Tommy Wright era is this low. Well it is because of the expectation. Saints came into this game off the back of a disastrous League Cup campaign suffering shock defeats to Montrose and Forfar, both results could arguably be on this list. Opening the league season at Celtic Park is the hardest way to start the campaign, but it went worse than anyone's expectations. Tommy Wright's men were never close to being in the game recording only 22% possession and 1 shot that was off target. Mikey Johnston opened the scoring. Ryan Christie continued to his fine form to start the season by scoring the games next three goals securing the matchball with a fantastic strike after the break. The misery wasn't over, Olivier Ntcham, Odsonne Edouard and Leigh Griffiths all got in on the action before Kevin Clancy decided enough was enough and blew the full time whistle. The season would get worse as it took Saints another 8 games to record their first win of the season.
4. St. Johnstone 0-6 Celtic, Scottish Premiership, 7th October 2018
You might say how is conceding six worse than conceding seven? Well simply because it should have been a lot more. The game was just as one sided as the seven nil thrashing. Danny Swanson would take Saints third and last shot just 12 minutes into the match, which at that point they looked like they could cause an upset. However, it was at that point James Forrest realised he could get anywhere he wanted. He started the rout on 15 minutes and by the 38th minute he'd have his hat-trick, he got his fourth just before the break with Edouard sneaking a goal in during the Forrest show. Celtic seemed like they only came out for the second half because they had to. St. Johnstone still failed to lay a glove on them however with Callum McGregor putting the cherry on top of a fabulous Celtic performance that looked to turn around their season.
3. St. Johnstone 1-2 Trakai, Europa League First Qualifying Round 1st Leg, 29th June 2017
The first European game to make this list comes from the 2017/18 season where St. Johnstone drew what people believed to be an easy tie in Lithuanian outfit FC Trakai. It would be the visitors who took an early lead however, Maksim Maksimov turned a low cross past Zander Clark. Saints got back into the game creating a number of chances before Joe Shaughnessy headed home from a Liam Craig corner. The Riteriai took the lead right back when Vaidotas Silenas silenced the McDiarmid Park crowd with a spectacular strike that nestled into the top corner with Zander Clark being left helpless. Saints couldn't capatilise on the opportunities that they created later on in the game and never really looked like they would score again. Silenas got sent off before the end but not even that could help the Perthshire side. They would go on to lose 1-0 the next week in Lithuania, shockingly crashing out the Europa League at the first hurdle.
2. Queen of the South 2-0 St. Johnstone, Scottish Cup Fifth Round, 7th February 2015
Saints defence of the cup had started off well defeating fellow Premiership outfit Ross County 2-1 in the fourth round. However, the Doonhammers always looked like the more likely side to progress in a freezing clash at Palmerston. With snow pilled up at the side of the pitch David Wotherspoon has the first real effort of the game sending a free kick narrowly wide of Jim Atkinson's right post. As the fog rolled in Queens started to control the game, opening the scoring just after half time when Derrick Lyle got the crucial touch on Lewis Kidd's cross to send the ball into the net. St. Johnstone hopes were petering away, and when Michael O'Halloran miscued his shot at the back post it didn't seem like it would be their day. Gavin Reilly confirmed those beliefs when he swept home Stephen McKenna's cross in injury time.
1. St. Johnstone 0-1 FC Minsk, Europa League Third Qualifying Round 2nd Leg, 8th August 2013
Off the back of the Rosenborg triumph the sky seemed the limit for Saints European campaign and after an good 1-0 win in Belarus 7 days earlier and a 42 year unbeaten record at home in European competitions, the talk around McDiarmid Park was who we wanted in the next round, the consensus seemed to be Wigan. However, there was 90 minutes of football stood between us and the draw. Uladzimir Bushma had a busy day in the Minsk goal he had to be alert to first keep out Stevie May and then Nigel Hasselbaink. The Dutchman sent a shot past the post shortly after. The hosts were still knocking at the door after the break with Steven MacLean putting one shot wide of the post then one over the bar. The stadium fell silent when Milos Rnic's curling effort evaded Alan Mannus. The visitors upped the tempo in the final 15 minutes pushing for a winner, it would be Dave MacKay who would have the only troublesome effort in the dying minutes of regulation, having a free-kick parried by Bushma. In extra-time the sides traded efforts but ultimately neither could provide the breakthrough, and so the game went to penalties. By the time Rory Fallon stepped up to take Saints third penalty, they already trailed 3-0 with MacKay and Cregg both missing while Vasilyuk, Razin and Sverchinskiy all scored theirs for the Belorussians. The New Zealand player converted and with Mannus saving Kibuks Saints stayed alive. Gwion Edwards scored and all the pressure fell on the shoulders of Mannus again, needing a save from Kazeka to keep the shootout going. He would deliver, beating away a poor attempt. Up stepped last weeks hero in Grodno, Steven MacLean, if he scored it would go to sudden death. He didn't. Bushma dove down well to left and killed the hopes of Saints fans inside the stadium.
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