Tommy Wright is confident that a victory at Hamilton on Saturday will seal St Johnstone’s top six place.
But, given the record Saints have against the Accies this season, they are in no place to take it for granted.
Hamilton have beaten the Perth men twice already, and Wright has seen evidence of late that their form slump does not paint a true picture of their level of performance.
“I think a win on Saturday would practically guarantee it but it’s going to be tough against Hamilton,” the McDiarmid Park boss pointed out.
“I watched them against Motherwell and there was nothing between the teams until Motherwell scored a wonder goal.
“Things can change so quickly in games at this level.
“Hamilton will look back and see we were the last team they beat, so they will hope to do it again.”
Top six qualification last season was secured well before this point by Saints.
But that is reflection on how standards have improved in the Premiership this year, according to Wright.
And that includes his own side.
“We are three points better off this season than we were last year,” Wright stressed.
“But the league is tighter because 12 months ago we were already guaranteed the top six with this amount of games to go.
“It has definitely been a more competitive league this season.
“So although we have more points now, there’s still a lot of work to do to get there.”