ST JOHNSTONE needs a miracle to continue their quest to win the Premier Sports Cup, which they famously won as part of a cup double two years ago.
They welcome Ayr United to McDiarmid Park on Saturday, but despite beating Elgin City in midweek, the damage had been done in their previous two games.
Two dismal draws to Annan Athletic and Queen of the South and two subsequent penalty shootout defeats mean they cannot catch group leaders Annan and can reach eight points if they beat Ayr, but that tally is highly unlikely to be enough for one of the three best runners-up spots.
It represents a dismal start to the season for manager Callum Davidson who already seems to be under pressure from fed-up fans, despite a midweek win at Elgin.
Championship side Ayr have hardly started their season on fire either, despite being awarded a 3-0 win in their opening game against Elgin City, which actually finished goalless, because their visitors fielded an ineligible player.
Lee Bullen's men lost heavily to Queen of the South in group and were held by Annan. Their six new summer arrivals may take time to gel.
How the bookies view it
Saints are 3/4 favourites with Boylesports. The Honest Men can be backed at 10/3 with Paddy Power and the draw is 14/5 with McBookie.com.
Recent head to heads
Saints haven't lost to Ayr in their last nine meetings, although they last played them in the Scottish Cup three seasons ago.
Here's footage of St Johnstone's midweek win at Borough Briggs against Elgin City.
Players to watch
Stevie May came on as a first-half sub at Elgin after Theo Bair was injured and the former Aberdeen striker stakes his place for a starting slot with a goal.
Ayr's summer recruit Dipo Akinyemi was a prolific scorer for Welling United and will be hoping to get off the mark for his new side with a goal in Perth.
Did anything else catch the eye?
St Johnstone at last hit the goal trail against a poor Elgin side in midweek and although there are plenty of murmurings and complaints in Perthshire, they should have too much for an Ayr side who haven't looked too clever either.
The 3/4 is just about acceptable for a home win.
They should be able to win this with a bit to spare too against an Ayr side with nothing to play for and it's worth taking a chance on the 2/1 on offer from McBookie.com on a Saints win minus one on the handicaps.
This Scottish League Cup match between St Johnstone and Ayr United will be played on Jul 23, 2022 and kick off at 15:00. Check below for our tipsters best St Johnstone vs Ayr United prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.