St Mirren players will celebrate the New Year tonight under a Hogmanay booze ban imposed by boss Gus MacPherson, reports The Scotsman. The Buddies are due to play Kilmarnock at St Mirren Stadium on Saturday, leading MacPherson to put out a 'no bevvy' order to his squad.

MacPherson said: "Drinking alcohol a day or two before a game definitely impairs a players' performance. We have a professional bunch of players here and they understand how important it is to be at the peak of physical fitness for games."

To prove MacPherson's point, midfielder Stephen McGinn said: "It's hard not being able to have a drink at New Year when all your pals are talking about how much of a good time they're going to have.

At the end of the day I'm doing what they all dream about - playing in the Premier League. They would easily swap places with me if all it meant was not having a drink at Hogmanay."

Team-mate Andy Dorman added: "There's plenty time for us to get bevvied at New Year after our football careers are over."