St Johnstone’s defeat to Dundee the last time the teams clashed was the low point of the Perth club’s season so far.
A 10-point gap opened up between the two Tayside sides and, from a Perth perspective, an eight-point gap to 11th.
It would become nine a few days later.
Fans demanded answers at the front door of the Geoff Brown Stand after the game and head coach, Simo Valakari, admitted that his team’s start to the match, losing three early goals, was “catastrophic”.
As the sides prepare to meet again, this time at Dens Park, Saints have the chance to move level on points with the Dark Blues and, if they win by two goals, jump above their opponents in the Premiership table.
Whatever happens from here on, the January 5th fixture was undeniably a hugely impactive one for St Johnstone.
Courier Sport picks out six significant post-Dundee defeat changes.
Smith and Raymond
You could have chosen pretty much any of the 11 players to substitute before half-time. The Saints performance in the early stages was that bad.
But Matt Smith and Andre Raymond were the two players taken off on 28 minutes.
Neither had an injury and both had long walks to the dugout.
The Finn hasn’t given game-time to Smith or Raymond since, with the Trinidad and Tobago international now a Dunfermline loan player for the remainder of the season after not even being included in recent match-day squads.
Smith was made available for transfer last month.
Change of goalies
Valakari was already trying to bring in another goalkeeper by this point.
But Josh Rae’s error for the opening goal confirmed that there was no time to waste on that front, and that potential work permit delays with European players made signing a British goalie more prudent.
Swansea City’s Andy Fisher became the first recruit of the transfer window a few days later and Rae, who has been loaned out to Raith Rovers, didn’t play for Saints again.
Kirk the main man
Makenzie Kirk missed the home games against Hibs and Dundee.
The former Hearts man was restored to the team for the next match after the derby defeat, however – away to Rangers.
He has only been benched once since and is now Saints’ joint top scorer in the league.
Benji Kimpioka was the main man up front at the turn of the year.
He certainly isn’t anymore.
One from two veterans
Having gone through a spell of four games in November/early December where Valakari started both of his veteran forwards, Nicky Clark and Graham Carey, he decided that it had to be one or the other for the next six matches.
He was persuaded to give the combination another try for the Dundee match and, with Smith toiling, Saints were overrun in the middle of the pitch for that calamitous first half-hour.
Valakari needed more energy and physicality in that area and in the subsequent eight games, the Clark-Carey combination has never been a starting one again.
In fact, Clark has only been picked in the first XI once – the subsequent match at Ibrox.
Three at the back
Formation changes have been a theme of Valakari’s tenure.
Up until the Dundee game he appeared settled on a back four.
After it, though, he opted for a central defensive three which has been the go-to set-up over the last couple of months.
Starters and subs
The biggest change is overall.
At most, there will only be four St Johnstone players who started in January on the Dens pitch at 3pm on Saturday.
The comparison of benches will be even more stark.
Last time out it read – Hepburn, Essel, Keltjens, Brookfield, MacPherson, Kucheriavyi, McPake, Franczak, Dair.
Of those nine substitutes, Fran Franczak could well be the only one still in Valakari’s match-day squad this weekend.
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