IAN MURRAY has sent out a message of support to the worried St Mirren fans while proclaiming - now is not the time to panic.

Concern has started to creep into the stands in Paisley with the Buddies only recording one victory from their first six Ladbrokes Championship games, a result that came in a 2-0 win over Queen of the South two weeks ago.

Their latest disappointment came last weekend to at home to high-flying Falkirk when Saints squandered a two-goal half-time lead to eventually lose 3-2.

Manager Murray acknowledges that the situation is not what he, his staff or supporters had hoped for following their relegation from the Premiership last season.

But he has sought to reassure fearing fans, insisting that there are grounds for optimism around St Mirren Park.

He said: “We know we don’t have as many points as we would have hoped for by this stage of the season, but on the flip side we are still very much in the mix for a top-four place without playing as well as we can.

“That is the message. We completely and utterly understand we are not where we want to be after this amount of games. We are not going to dress it up in any other way.

“But we are also conscious that this league is so, so competitive, everyone takes points off everyone. When you start to panic it can make things worse.

“Things change very, very quickly. Falkirk are sitting second top, but they will be saying ‘It’s a fantastic start but don’t get complacent’.

“Every single week there is a team that drops points that will get leapfrogged by someone else.

“It’s certainly not the time to panic, that is for sure.”

Murray is keen to accentuate the positives over the last few weeks ahead of tonight’s meeting in Paisley with Raith Rovers.

After beating Queens in Dumfries two weeks ago, an impressive first half against the Bairns was only undone by a poor second period.

The St Mirren manager has taken encouragement from the majority of what he has seen from his team in both matches, and wants his men to get the result their performance deserves tonight against the Fifers.

He said: “The guys have been good this week, although they normally are to be fair to them. The result on Saturday was disappointing for about 48 hours but you then have to pick yourself up and go again.

“We need to try and take the positives out of the situation. Over the last two games, three out of the four halves have been exceptionally good but we also let ourselves down in a very vital one, too.

“The last few games we have scored early goals but ultimately have only gone on to win one game. So it is something we need to look at. We are starting games fine with no problem, we just need to kill teams off that little bit better. Hopefully that will come through time.

“I think we are starting to get a spine about our team and a little bit of continuity in terms of shape and personnel.”

Ahead of tonight, St Mirren fans will be boosted by the news that midfielder Stuart Carswell is back fit for selection having missed out over the last few weeks.

Murray added: “Stuart Carswell is fit and available. He is back in and everyone else is fine.

“It’s a game we are all looking forward to.”