St Mirren were last in the SPL six years ago, a stay that lasted just one season. Gus MacPherson, the man who has brought them back, is a manager of exceptional promise, turning round a team that had been moribund for years under Tom Hendrie then John Coughlin.
Last season, they swept aside most opposition in the first division and enjoyed a couple of decent cup runs. Unfortunately, St Mirren have since lost their best player, Charlie Adam having impressed sufficiently on loan to earn a chance at Rangers; their second best player, Andy Millen (41), surely cannot continue to defy time.
With the new signings - Alex Burke, Garry Brady and Richard Brittain - unlikely to get pulses racing, you fear that St Mirren's stay in the top flight could be equally brief this time round.