ST MIRREN manager Jack Ross insists his players are now full of belief they can avoid relegation from the Championship.

The Saints produced a colossal performance to defeat league leaders Hibs 2-0 at the Paisley 2021 Stadium on Wednesday night.

A double from full back Stelios Demetriou made sure of the Buddies' fourth win in a row and second successive league victory. Ross' side are now five points behind second-bottom Ayr United with a game in hand and a further three teams are within seven points.

St Mirren's fate would have been all but sealed had they lost to Ayr last week and the Hibees, the gap to Ayr in that case would've been an almost insurmountable 14 points.

Ross says two wins on the back of two cup victories has convinced the St Mirren squad they can beat the drop.

He said: "You can feel it, it's tangible from them now. When I've spoken publicly I've always maintained my belief, I asked the players to feed off that. It's easy for me to say that, but now I think they have it and ultimately they are going onto the pitch so they need to feel it."

St Mirren were dominant against a stunned Hibs side, despite being priced as big as 5/1 with bookmakers to win, they were relentless against the title favourites and Ross admitted it is the best display he has witnessed from his side.

He said: "It is probably as well as we've played all season. I think we have played well on other occasions but given the calibre of the opposition and where they are in the league, we had to be good and we were.

"I thought for the full game we were at it, we're in a good place as a squad and that has shown in performances and results. We'll take huge belief from that."

The two goals came from an unlikely source with Stelios Demetriou netting his first two goals for the Paisley side after arriving in January.

The defender has endeared himself to the Saints' faithful since his arrival and Ross says his larger than life personality has been a hit in the Buddies' dressing room.

He added: "He's probably better going forward than he is defensively, although he did well defensively as well. He's a real asset to us because he can play either side, he's very two-footed.

"That was part of the attraction to bring him to the club because we knew he would give us that versatility. His two finishes were terrific, I think he enjoyed himself.

"He's a really, really good character and we need them around the place to give us a better feeling around the training ground."