St Mirren performance against Hibs was one of the best this season

Last month I predicted Stephen Robinson and St Mirren would continue to raise eyebrows in the Scottish Premiership.

To an extent I have been proven correct, for once, in that assessment even if Robinson achieved the feat on Wednesday by virtue of his surprising post-match comments.

For all who braved the cold for the match against Hibs in Paisley, the jubilation sparked by Lewis Jamieson's stoppage-time equaliser masked an unconventional Buddies performance.

Make no mistake, defensively it was sloppy, something that can hardly be associated with St Mirren in recent times under Robinson.

Perhaps just as confusing was the sluggish start and inability to assert dominance in the match until deep in the first half - something just seemed off.

But watch Robinson's post-match debrief with Sky Sports and you'd be forgiven for thinking St Mirren should have had all three points.

"I thought we were fantastic, one of our best performances of the season," he said.

"We found ourselves 1-0 down then 2-1 down, so we showed an abundance of character but I thought some of the football we played was excellent. I thought we dominated large parts of the game.

"Our defending for the two goals was poor and uncharacteristic of people who made the mistakes but the boys rescued them and I thought we deserved it."

Uncharacteristic is the perfect description - but one of the best performances of the season? That left more than a few St Mirren-minded folks puzzled.

I too, at first glance and second and third, was left surprised by Robinson's comments.

This is a St Mirren team sitting third in the league, on merit might I add, and with a growing back-catalogue of tremendous performances this season.

The match against Hibs, to the eye, doesn't even come close.

However, the longer I considered Robinson's comments the more I warmed to his assessment of the late comeback to claim a precious point to keep a three-point lead in third with a game in hand.

Anyone of the Paisley persuasion has seen enough St Mirren teams crumble in similar situations to that against Hibs, or worse go out to a narrow defeat with a whimper.

That simply was never going to happen on Wednesday night. Instead, Robinson's charges threw everything at it to get their just rewards with seconds remaining.

And that's the reason that Robinson's post-match comments do ring true - even if it's not the exact manner in which he put it himself.

The manager had been pleased with tactical adaptations regarding pressing during the match and increased turnovers in good areas but it's the "abundance of character" that made Wednesday night so special.

There was never any doubt among the support that there will be bumps along the road despite a scintillating start to the season - with defeats only suffered to Celtic and Rangers.

But perhaps the one thing that sets this St Mirren side apart is the real grit, determination and togetherness exemplified in the late point.

No longer are points being surrendered as things seem to go in the opposite direction, no longer is there a fear or acceptance of not being up to the task against perceived bigger clubs like Hearts, Hibs and Aberdeen. 

For that reason, Wednesday night was right up there in terms of performances from St Mirren this season. Sure, it wasn't as free-flowing or as dominant as other matches this term, of course it was one point instead of three but consider that result with some in previous seasons...

It looks a lot better then.

I don't think any St Mirren supporter is naive enough to think top-notch, slick performances are possible every week, however, with the healthy confidence in competition in the changing room, there is every chance for poor performances to still result in points.

Results like that against Hibs simply wouldn't have happened in some previous torturous campaigns, the fact that it did should bring immense comfort and optimism.

It mightn't have been the best performance in terms of passing and defending but come the end of the season when points totals are split by single figures and it might just be looked back upon as one of the best showings all season.