QUEENS ALL SET FOR THE BIG KICK-OFF

Lovell in great form

Queens kick-off their 2005/06 league campaign when they face St Johnstone in a tricky fixture at Perth on Saturday. Several hundred Queens will be making the trip and they must be optomistic of success if the pre-season games are anything to go by. Queens have doubts about Bowey and O'Neill but manager Scott has a wealth of talent in his pool with the talented Lovell probably taking over as Captain. Lovell has been in marvelous form over the last few games and his influence on the team is there for everyone to see. My only nagging doubt is that Queens,despite scoring 4 goals against Albion Rovers, lack punch up front. The amount of missed chances against Albion must give cause for concern with Lyle the main culprit. The Tanman I'm sure will be going all out to make amends against the Perth Saints tomorrow. St Johnstone are something of an unknown quantity with manager Coyle having almost rebuilt the team. Queens look the more settlled side and if they can put their chances away, should come away with a victory. I will be a tough on to call though and Saints with home advantage, will try and roll over Queens. I'm hoping for Queens to off the season with a resounding win.





History of the St. Johnstone v Queen of the South fixture

Queen o.t.S. face a trip to St. Johnstone at McDiarmid Park on Saturday afternoon, hoping to improve upon an average previous return from this fixture. Of the 27 games played, The Doonhamers have recorded 6 wins, and St. Johnstone have come away with 12 victories.

The most recent encounter between these two sides was less than a year ago, in February 2005, when they played out a goalless draw in a Scottish Division One match.

For a detailed analysis of the head-to-head between the two sides, click here

Recent encounters between the teams:
2004/2005	Sat 30 Apr	Queen o.t.S.	2 - 0	St. Johnstone	SCD1
2004/2005	Sat 12 Feb	St. Johnstone	0 - 0	Queen o.t.S.	SCD1
2004/2005	Sat 16 Oct	Queen o.t.S.	0 - 1	St. Johnstone	SCD1
2004/2005	Tue 31 Aug	St. Johnstone	3 - 0	Queen o.t.S.	SCC
2004/2005	Sat 14 Aug	St. Johnstone	1 - 3	Queen o.t.S.	SCD1
2003/2004	Sat 01 May	Queen o.t.S.	1 - 1	St. Johnstone	SCD1
2003/2004	Sat 20 Dec	St. Johnstone	2 - 2	Queen o.t.S.	SCD1

Recent respective form guides

St. Johnstone's poor home run has seen them win just 1 and draw 2 of the last six. Saints have conceded a disappointing 6 goals in this period, and managed to convert only 3 of their own chances.

Queen o.t.S.'s away form is none too clever either, collecting 2 wins and 3 draws from the last six. Only 5 goals have been registered in this time, with 6 leaked at the wrong end.



For a detailed analysis of team form guides throughout the leagues, click here

Current form guides:	P	W	D	L	F	A	P
St. Johnstone	6	2	2	2	7	4	8
Queen o.t.S.	6	3	2	1	10	6	11

FootyMad's prediction ...

Queen o.t.S. are not doing too bad on their travels, and I think they should continue by carving out a narrow victory at St. Johnstone. Away win

Sequence statistics:
St. Johnstone	No sequences of note
Queen o.t.S.	Won each of the previous 3 matches. Last drawn game 4 outings ago.