St Mirren’s position is a rather handy illustration of just how tight the Scottish Premiership is this season away from the very top of the league.

The Buddies currently sit in sixth place, and while they will be viewing Aberdeen and Dundee United as targets seven points ahead of them in joint-third, they are also just four points clear of Hearts in the relegation playoff position.

Having been round the block once or twice before and having been immersed in the league this term, Marcus Fraser understands all too well just how evenly matched – and therefore just how cutthroat – the competition is.

The Saints are currently on a three-game losing streak following their defeat at Celtic Park on Sunday, but prior to that, their win over Rangers was their third victory on the trot. So, Fraser is more than confident that their recent wobble is just a blip, and they are more than capable of turning things around once more.

If they can do that, then their pre-season goal of maintaining their top six position from last season and pushing for European football once more is there for them to grasp, with the defender feeling that their next run of four league games ahead of a trip to Ibrox in February could be a vital stretch in their season.

For St Mirren, then, it is still all to play for.

“The manager kind of touched on that too,” Fraser said.

“But every team will feel that. It’s really there for someone to go and grab and we need to look at what’s realistic for us as a team then go and grab that opportunity.

“We’ve got that in the next few games coming up. I think if we get back to our basics, get back to clean sheets, then we can really put a run together and get success.

“We won’t be [giving up our top six place easily] this season, that’s for sure. We know how hard that is, as you can see from the league.

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“I think everyone’s beating everyone this year, which makes it really competitive. I think when you’re going into any game you know you’ve got a chance to win.

“We just need to be set up, [and get] back to what we know we’re good at. I think we showed that in glimpses against Celtic, especially the first maybe half an hour, 35 minutes.

“Next week we’ll be working as hard as ever in training, learning from the mistakes over the last couple of games, the manager will set us up and we’ll be raring to go again.”

One thing Fraser acknowledges will have to be eradicated from their game quickly is the spate of individual errors over recent matches that have proved costly, and undermined much of the good work they have managed in those games.

Returning goalkeeper Zach Hemming was suspect for a couple of goals in the 3-0 loss at Celtic Park, particularly the third, where Fraser’s presence seemed to spook him and led to him spilling a simple catch into the path of Nicolas Kuhn to tap home.

Celtic's crucial second goal was also avoidable, as Richard Taylor was caught napping at a corner to allow Auston Trusty to head home.

After Alex Gogic had been the fall guy by conceding two needless penalties at Rugby Park, such careless moments are something that Fraser is keen to see the back of, and soon.

“It is definitely important,” he said.

“These things happen. I’ve been involved for long enough and you can’t dwell on them.

(Image: Andrew Milligan - PA) “What I feel has always worked for me in the past is getting back out on the training field and working even harder.

“The group of boys will be keen to do that. We’ll be back in on Tuesday, working towards a big game against Dundee United.

“It’s been individual errors and the manager’s touched on that in the dressing room, that we’ll just need to brush up on that.

“The boys are honest enough, they’ll take that on the chin and we’ll work hard to stop it.”