By Ian Roache and Graeme Dey

ST JOHNSTONE-bound Chris Millar has been told he will never play for Morton again after agreeing to sign a pre-contract deal with the Perth club.

The experienced midfielder informed the Greenock club yesterday of his intention to move to McDiarmid Park once his Cappielow contract expires in the summer.

He has been left out of the Ton squad for today’s visit to Partick Thistle and manager Jim McInally confirmed, “Chris has informed us of his decision and that the deal is more or less done and dusted.

“Perhaps he will say that he has not yet got an offer from us for next season, but we had told him that we had arranged a meeting with his agent for January.

“As far as we are concerned he will not play for us again. We ask supporters to come along and pay their money to watch us and it is only fair that they know that they are watching players who are committed to the club.”

Meanwhile, Saints goalkeeper Alan Main has pledged to put his Hamilton howler behind him as they seek to keep their slim title hopes alive when they entertain Livingston today.

Main’s mistake in allowing a James McArthur effort to slip under him not only consigned the Perth men to defeat, it also left them trailing joint leaders Accies and Dundee by 16 points in the championship race.

But the veteran shot-stopper is as determined to bounce back from that blunder as he was quick to accept responsibility for it at the time.

“I lost a bad goal and it was blatantly obvious it was my fault,’’ he said.

“I’m not going to hide behind the pitch.

“I am old enough to take responsibility for things.

“It wasn’t a great strike, nor was it that bad.

“But Gary Irvine has gone to block the shot and it’s gone through his legs and under my arm.

“The surface didn’t help.

“Early on Gary played a ball back to me along the ground and by the time it reached me it was six inches off the deck so I was expecting a bobble which didn’t happen.

“But no excuses.”

Main knows that when players of his vintage slip up inevitably critics pinpoint their age.

He denies, though, that his sell by date has been passed.

“The older you get the greater the scrutiny you find yourself subjected to,” he reflected.

“I’m under a lot more pressure second time around here at the age of 40 than I was during my first spell.

“But I’ll know myself when it’s time to say ‘That’s it’.

“If I wasn’t feeling right I wouldn’t kid myself on or cheat anyone else.

“But I lost goals when I was 20 and when I first came to Saints I’d a difficult time of it.

“Whatever age you are you just have to push through that.

“And I’m strong enough to cope with any criticism that’s flying my way.

“It’s not just myself who has to move on from losing to Hamilton. We’ve got to do that as a team because every game now is a massive one for us.

“We’ve a new manager and a new coach and, for as enjoyable as the training has been, it takes time to blend.

“But the games are obviously starting to run out so the pressure that’s on us to go out and perform is increasing.”

The hosts welcome Kevin Rutkiewicz back from suspension, while Jon Stewart (flu) and Willie McLaren (dental treatment) were both back training.

Manager Derek McInnes, who is searching for his first victory since taking charge, said, “If we can play in the same manner in which we did at Hamilton we can get the three points.

“Although we lost to Accies there were positives to take out of that game and I am optimistic.”