St Johnstone Remain Unbeaten Against Raith Rovers This Season
St Johnstone are unbeaten against Raith Rovers so far this season.
Watch: Raith Rovers v St Johnstone on BBC Scotland from 19:30 GMT on Friday.
Championship Form Guide Highlights Competitive Season
A statistic posted on the social media accounts of Scottish football site Pie and Bovril summarizes the current state of the Championship this season.
It presented the form guide for each team over the past six games, with leaders St Johnstone at the top with 11 points. Perhaps more surprisingly, their opponents on Friday, Raith Rovers, are at the bottom with just five points.
This is surprising as Raith Rovers are only three points behind a promotion play-off place, although they have played two more games than Ayr United, who currently occupy fourth position.
The optimistic view is that Raith Rovers remain in contention for promotion.
However, from a more cautious perspective, Raith Rovers are only six points clear of Airdrieonians, who currently hold the relegation play-off spot.
Therefore, this form table likely emphasizes just how competitive the Championship season has been overall.
While St Johnstone and Partick Thistle have been somewhat ahead of the rest, there are few fixtures in this division where the outcome can be confidently predicted.
Raith Rovers’ Mixed Form and Challenges
Raith Rovers have experienced inconsistent form throughout the season. Since Dougie Imrie took over as manager in late November, the team has recorded only two league wins. In total, Raith have won seven Championship matches this season, compared to St Johnstone’s 14 victories.
Injuries to key players Lewis Stevenson, Callum Fordyce, and Shaun Byrne have also affected Raith’s performance.
Despite these challenges, there has been progress in the Challenge Cup, and a narrow 1-0 defeat away at holders Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup was a respectable result.
Raith Rovers have also consistently performed well at home under the Friday night lights, especially in matches broadcast on the BBC.
They will need to maintain this level of performance, as St Johnstone currently lead the Championship by five points.
St Johnstone Strengthen Squad Ahead of Key Fixture
St Johnstone have strengthened their squad during the January transfer window.
While Adamah Sidibeh departed the club, they added attacking options with the signings of Josh Fowler from Queen's Park and Ruraidh Paton on loan from Port Vale.
Paton scored on his debut last week in the 1-0 victory at Airdrieonians, and Fowler is expected to find the net soon given his impressive goal-scoring record with Queen’s Park.
The potency of St Johnstone’s front four, which includes Jamie Gullan—who provided an assist last week—and Championship top scorer Josh McPake on the opposite flank, is likely to pose significant challenges for Raith Rovers.
St Johnstone have won two and drawn one of their three fixtures against Raith this season, and manager Simo Valakari’s side will aim to extend their lead to eight points over second-placed Partick Thistle, who face Airdrieonians at home on Saturday.
