It's not difficult to work out how Billy Reid's sides are going to play. Just about every time we've faced a team managed by him - either Clyde or Hamilton - they have been quite happy to sit in, get men behind the ball and try to hit on the break. They are stuffy and hard to break down. So why on earth did we decide to resort to the pass, pass and pass again nonsense that didn't work the last time we came up against a lower league side?
We may have had plenty of possession but we did sod all with it. We had hardly any clear cut chances and while we may have been waiting for the gaps to open up, that was never likely against a team that likes to keep things tight and pick their moments to attack. It was an absolutely dire game and it's now two years since we last managed to win a home cup tie. Hamilton have no intention of changing their approach in the replay - although they might have Alex Neil back - and if we play the same way then it will be another dull contest and we could end up out of the cup.
In fairness the injuries to Jim Goodwin and Steven Thompson didn't help. Both had been kept quiet and both were missing. Jon McShane seemed the best option to replace Thompson so it was a surprise to see Nigel Hasselbaink start - and with Aaron Mooy keeping his place it was hardly the most physically imposing side. On the plus side, Hamilton had no Alex Neil - but they did have Dougie Imrie and Ali Crawford as well as strong defensive duo Martin Canning and Mark McLaughlin.
Saints perhaps didn't come flying out of the traps but they certainly started positively, Paul McGowan cutting inside before shooting at David Hutton after less than two minutes. However, after that we seemed far too happy to knock it about and wait for the openings, which are unlikely to come against Hamilton unless you're chasing a lead. A couple of times nice balls were played into McGowan and Hasselbaink but they were unable to do a great deal with them.
And, in truth, there wasn't a great deal to write home about in the opening half hour. We controlled the game but, as has so often been the case this season, were unable to do much with the ball when we got into the final third. Hamilton attacked at times but rarely threatened Craig Samson and his bright orange kit. Simon Mensing got a booking for his third foul - Willie Collumn not realising the offending player should run to him when he's got the cards out rather than the other way around before Hasselbaink skinned Imrie and shot wide as his old pal tried to pull him to the ground.
We were treated to the rare sight of Hamilton having a shot when Greig Spence tried his luck from 20 yards but it was well off target. We didn't learn though and after we blocked his next shot he collected the rebound and sent in a teasing cross that Jim McAlister somehow headed wide. Before that had happened Saints had been readying a change and Gary Teale came on for Graham Carey. Incredibly, this was later revealed to be a tactical change rather than enforced by injury. Hasselbaink seemed a more likely candidate for a sub - but immediately he went on a great run down the left before sending in a cross that bounced right through to McGowan, who was unable to get enough of his foot around the ball and put it wide. David Barron then strode forward and set Mooy up but once again the finishing was poor and it went wide.
Another chance arose when Hasselbaink sprayed a brilliant ball out to Teale, who raced down the right then foolishly opted to pass rather than go himself. The pass was never on and it was no surprise to see the ball go behind. That was about your lot from a dire first half - the highlight being a few Hamilton fans getting booted out and one running away up the stand as a steward went after him Benny Hill style. Football wise we had improved after Teale came on but overall had been pretty poor, with Hamilton happy to dig in and soak up the pressure.
You wouldn't have thought the second half could be any worse than the first but it certainly started that way as we resorted to the knocking it about nonsense. A silly short corner saw Teale deliver a cross that was actually headed off the line before McGowan put the bouncing ball wide. Clearly realising they could win if they attacked properly, Hamilton replaced Crawford and Spence with Grant Anderson and Andrew Ryan - and almost took the lead as Canning met a corner only for his shot to be deflected over. That finally saw McShane introduced in place of Mooy before McAlister was booked for a foul on Barron.
Perhaps both managers finally realised another 90 minutes of this was the last anyone wanted as the chances began to appear - McGowan had a shot deflected behind and Anderson should have done better than shoot softly at Samson when given a clear sight of goal. McGowan then had another chance after he managed to make some space for himself among the packed Accies defence but shot wide. Teale then decided to shoot rather than pass for once but while his left footed effort certainly had power, it lacked placement and provided Hutton with an easy save.
The longer things went on, the more you feared Hamilton taking the win and they looked very threatening when they attacked. Paul Currie came on for Grant Gillespie for the final 15 minutes before Teale almost scored as we entered the last 10 minutes, his 25 yard effort flashing across goal. Hamilton then won a free-kick and McLaughlin's header almost looped over Samson before we attacked again, McGowan's latest effort deflecting behind. Barron got our first booking with a few minutes left for a stupid shirt pull on McAlister. Another chance came McGowan's way but once again he failed to make it count, Hutton only having to take a few steps to his right to save it.
And that was that. A dismal game, a poor performance from us and we can have no complaints about a replay. Let's just hope we learn our lesson this time and take a different approach.
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