Stephen Robinson on Diarmuid O'Carroll's absence, Steven Naismith support and St Mirren's 2-1 win over Hearts

The Buddies gaffer watched his side register their second Premiership win of the season at the SMiSA Stadium on Saturday.

Diarmuid O’Carroll is this weekend on the brink of leaving St Mirren.

The Buddies assistant manager missed Saturday’s 2-1 Premiership win over Hearts as he held talks with an as-yet unnamed outfit regarding an Under-21s coaching role.

Boss Stephen Robinson was assisted in the dugout by Brian Kerr who has been working with Allan McManus at the Ralston academy.

O’Carroll joined Saints with Robbo two-and-a-half years ago but the highly-rated 37-year-old – who is also part of Northern Ireland’s coaching staff – may be about to say farewell to Greenhill Road.

And with just under two years remaining on O’Carroll’s contract, the Buddies could also be entitled to compensation if he moves on in the coming days.

Speaking after his side's success over the Jambos, Robbo said: “Diarmuid wasn’t here but Brian’s come in and done great for me.

Download the free Renfrewshire Live app today

Renfrewshire Live, the new free app dedicated to bringing you around the clock breaking news, is now available to download.

Powered by the Paisley Daily Express, Renfrewshire Live is your go-to source for news, features and sport with live coverage provided direct to the app, seven days a week.

The dedicated team of experienced journalists, responsible for the publication of the award-winning Express, will focus on breaking news, day and night, across Renfrewshire’s towns and villages.

There is also a dedicated St Mirren section that will follow every kick of the ball with the Buddies.

Available on both Android and Apple. Download here: smarturl.it/RenfrewLiveSocial

“Him and Jamie [Langfield, goalkeeping coach] were a big part of the set-plays. Credit to both of them. They’ve worked on the set-plays all week.

“We’ll make an official announcement over the weekend or Monday. I don’t want to jump the gun because I’m not 100 per cent sure. He is speaking to someone else [about] an Under-21 position.

“We’ve shown that we’ve got that staff in place to step up if that should happen. But I think it’s a matter that we deal with on Monday morning when we get the full facts.”

Meanwhile, Robbo has backed under-fire Hearts boss Steven Naismith to turn things around after Jambos fans called for him to go following an eighth straight loss and a winless start to the campaign.

The Northern Irishman added: “We’ve all been there. The expectation at Hearts is massive. Steven’s put a squad together of really talented players. Sometimes it takes a little bit of time to gel.

“There wasn’t loads in the game. Everyone needs time, everyone needs perseverance. It’s forgetting very quickly how good the team were last season and what results they got last season. Unfortunately, you don’t have a lot of money in the bank in this game.

“I think Steven’s a terrific manager. I believe he will turn it around and get the results. I have no doubt Hearts will be fighting at the top end of the table this season again.”

Goals from Richard Taylor and Toyosi Olusanya either side of a Craig Halkett effort earned fifth-placed Buddies a first victory since the opening day of the Premiership season.

For Robbo, it was a welcome success as he pointed to a tough fixture list which has seen Saints play four of last season’s top six in their opening half-dozen league games as well as this term's form side Aberdeen.

He said: “Credit to the players. I thought we started a little bit nervy the first 25 minutes and then after that we got the ball down.

“I think the organisation was excellent. We were comfortable without the ball, really disciplined and hitting hard on the break. We had two or three great chances to make the game very comfortable. The boys are buying into everything we’re doing. The subs that came on, I thought were fantastic.

“For me it’s a fantastic start when you consider the teams that we’ve played in this run – all the top four plus SK Brann [in the UEFA Conference League]. For us, expectations have risen but we’re certainly meeting them I feel at this moment in time.”

Don't miss the latestRenfrewshire headlines –sign up to our free daily newsletter here

Story SavedYou can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.