Paul McGinn reckons St Mirren need to overcome the heebie-jeebies if they are to haul themselves away from the foot of the Ladbrokes Premiership.

After earning a first away victory of the season at Motherwell last Saturday, the Buddies were floored on Boxing Day as St Johnstone hit them where it hurts with a last-gasp winner from Tony Watt.

That reversal left St Mirren just two points above bottom-of-the-table Dundee with a match against Kilmarnock to come this weekend before the top flight shuts down for the January break.

Wednesday’s attritional tussle looked to be heading for a stalemate but it was the Perth Saints who finished strongly and were rewarded in the last knockings as Watt plundered his first goal since the end of August.

McGinn, 28, said: “It was hard to take but the way the last 15 or 20 minutes were going it was coming. I don’t think we can have any complaints. We started sitting deeper and invited it a bit. I thought we controlled the first half and St Johnstone were sloppy in possession but the second half was pretty much the same in reverse. We started giving the ball away and it never stuck up front. We were getting deeper and deeper and if you do that at this level you’ll get punished.

“Maybe your form plays a part in that. St Johnstone are comfortable in mid-table and overachieving probably, so they have the confidence to press on. But we get a bit tentative and nervous maybe, and sit deeper. But it was also just a lack of quality and us giving the ball away all the time.

“We had chances in the second half but didn’t do enough with it. Even I was guilty of putting in a couple of crosses straight to their goalkeeper. It just becomes a bad habit to get in to when you just keep giving the ball away cheaply in attack and then drop too deep when you don’t have it. I’m not best pleased with that performance.”

At this time of the season, St Mirren need all hands to the pump while picking up points in their own backyard is becoming increasingly important.

McGinn added: “We’re not big in numbers right now and lost Cody Cooke for the St Johnstone game who is quite a big physical presence up front.

“Simeon (Jackson) is coming up against some big defenders and quite often on his own. It’s hard for Simeon up there. You see how good (Alfredo) Morelos is for Rangers at holding the ball up, that gets you up the pitch. We’ve maybe lacked that.

“It’s a thin squad so we just have to do our best. Even a point against St Johnstone would have been okay but realistically we need to start winning our home games or it will not be positive come the end of the season.”

St Mirren travel to Ayrshire tomorrow for a clash with high-flying Kilmarnock but McGinn is confident the Saints can prosper at Rugby Park.

He said: “Kilmarnock’s not a bad one for us. Everyone thinks they’re some sort of superpower but they’re not. Nobody will fancy us but hopefully we can go there and get a result. It’s a really hectic schedule at this time of year but when you know the break is coming it makes it a bit easier.

“It’s good for us to have another game so soon coming off the back of a defeat. I’d have played the next day if I could have, although my body maybe couldn’t have coped. But I’ll be in a huff for three days until we get back out there again.”