Liam Craig has told Saints boss Derek McInnes that he’s still available as a stand-in left-back.
The capture of the versatile Alan Maybury has at last provided the Perth club with cover for first choice Danny Grainger.
But midfielder Craig, who filled in against Hearts after Grainger was carried off, insists he’ll answer the call again if required.
“I knew going into this season that, with Danny being the only left-back at the club, if he got sent off or injured then there was a chance I’d have to fill in,” he said.
“Having played the position before the gaffer knows I can do a job if need be.
“Now Alan’s come in I may not be required to do that. But I’m happy enough to play wherever he wants me to.”
With Dave Mackay and Grainger both doubts for today’s visit by Aberdeen, Craig may well be pressed into service again with Maybury being required on the right flank.
Wherever the former Falkirk man finds himself playing, he’s hoping that come 5pm Saints can still claim to be unbeaten this season.Troublesome”I was looking for a quiet re-introduction to the position at Tynecastle but I endured a troublesome first few minutes after taking over from Danny as Hearts had a great chance to score.
“Thankfully they didn’t take it and I was able to settle down.
“In the end playing left-back wasn’t a problem because having Michael Duberry, Kevin Rutkiewicz and Peter Enckleman alongside me was a huge help.
“It was a bizarre game because after going down to ten men we’d myself and Chris Millar playing full-backs in a back four I don’t think you’ll see again this season.
“But I thought we dealt well with everything they threw at us and got what was a good point.
“Considering it was the first day of the season, we were away from home, lost the first goal and had a man sent off, then it was a satisfying result-one which again demonstrated the spirit that has seen us through the last two years.
“Now we’ll look to make it two games unbeaten at the expense of Aberdeen.
“They got off to a great start against Hamilton but if we do our jobs right and play to the best of our ability we know we can get a result against anybody.”
Grainger will be given every chance of making it. However, Mackay is unlikely to feature due to the cracked bone in his back.
Meanwhile, Rory McArdle is hoping a successful start to his Aberdeen career will bring a rapid recall to the Northern Ireland squad for next month’s double header against Slovenia and Italy.
The free transfer from Rochdale got his first two caps on the tour of the USA and Chile earlier in the summer after impressing with the League Two promotion winners.
He was left out of Nigel Worthington’s team for the recent friendly against Monte-negro when some of the bigger named stars returned, but believes a move to the much higher profile SPL will boost his chances this time.
McArdle was one of five Aberdeen players who made impressive competitive debut appearances for the club in the 4-0 hammering of Hamilton Accies last weekend.
Now he is out to prove that was no one-off display by helping the Dons to another win at Perth today in an effort to earn a recall for his country’s testing Euro 2012 qualifiers.
“Hopefully I can be involved as these are two tough games against teams that played in the recent World Cup,” said McArdle.
“I was part of the squad that went to America in the summer and it was a great experience to face high class opposition like Turkey and Chile.
“I think playing at a high profile club like Aberdeen will only help put me further into the picture when it comes to international recognition.
“There are players such as Steve Davis, Kyle Lafferty and Steven Craigan playing in the SPL so if the national side are watching them they will see how I am doing.”
Aberdeen boss Mark McGhee was delighted and relieved at the impact McArdle and his other new signings made in their first league outing.UnchangedThat is why he is ready to go with an unchanged side this afternoon as the Dons try to build on their first opening day home win in 16 years.
However, McGhee knows only too well that his team beat Hamilton 3-0 last August and the rot set in very quickly after that.
That’s why he is as anxious as the Aberdeen supporters to see if last week’s victory was the start of a trend or just a false dawn for the Dons.
He said, “I have still to see whether it is the case that we have an embarrassment of riches and we will have a better idea of that by five o’ clock.
“Last week we had three goals from the skipper and another from a centre-half so we need to see whether some combination of our strikers can score goals as the jury is still out on them.
“There is a question over these players and that is: are they the type who’ll rest on their laurels because everyone is singing their praises after beating Hamilton or are they the type who’ll put that behind them and play with the same determination to keep getting results?
“I think we have got a number of players capable of doing a job as Josh Magennis did well, while Darren Mackie put in a shift when he came on.
“We still have still to see Scott Vernon in an SPL game and young Mitch Megginson has looked good in training.
“What we need to see against St Johnstone is that the team are capable of playing well on more than just the odd occasion.”
Vernon is added to the squad after recovering from injury and Richard Foster is also back after suspension.
But Michael Paton is out with a hamstring strain.
There should be a bumper crowd inside McDiarmid Park, with the Dons expected to bring a large following.
Saints boss Derek McInnes is relishing the prospect and urged his own set of supporters to make themselves heard.
“We had a lot of our fans at Tynecastle last weekend and their encouragement was much appreciated,” he said.
“Now we would love more of the same against Aberdeen because it really is a boost when they get behind us.”