- St. Johnstone have won four and drawn one of their last five Championship matches.
- Ayr United have won one, drawn one and lost three of their last five Championship fixtures.
- St. Johnstone have won ten, drawn five and lost just two of their 17 Championship away matches this season.
St. Johnstone look likely to beat Ayr again
John Rankin took charge of Ayr United at the end of March 2026 and the job of steadying the ship has been a difficult one so far.
Ayr are seventh in the Championship 2025-2026 table with 39 points from 35 games while leaders St. Johnstone have already banked 74 points from the same number of fixtures.
Simo Valakari has done an incredible job to bring the club to the top of the table since taking over in October 2024 and he looks set to maintain the momentum for a run-in that could yet see Saints promoted. Their playing style is progressive and structured, with controlled midfield play, disciplined pressing and quick vertical attacks when they have the ball, which they are very often.
Ayr tend to be more pragmatic and transition-based, looking to catch teams on the counter-attack, getting the ball wide and scoring on set pieces - a strategy that will be even more pronounced when they are behind.
Saints set to impose tempo on home side
St. Johnstone are in superb form, reeling off four consecutive wins culminating in a 4-0 home win over Airdrieonians and a 2-0 away win against Raith Rovers. The Saints are red-hot favourites to win this one and at 18/25, the odds on an away win look a tad short.
Ayr, who have won only four of their 17 home Championship matches this term (Drawn seven, Lost six), have a mixed record in recent head-to-head meetings.
St. Johnstone won this fixture 3-1 eight weeks ago, but the last five meetings between the clubs have produced two wins each and a draw.
Saints’ Joshua McPake has been in prolific form for the club with 16 goals in 33 appearances in the Championship, while Ayr’s top scorer Jamie Murphy has seven in 23 and has netted two of his team’s last four. St. Johnstone will dominate the game because of their structure and we like the looks of both teams to score at 77/100. Over 2.5 goals at 17/20 also appeals as both teams will be targeting a goal in this top-versus-bottom clash between a team in pursuit of promotion and a club looking for stability.
