St Johnstone goalkeeper Zander Clark fully expected to be busier than normal during his side’s current difficult run but recent displays have given him hope that they have a chance against champions Celtic.

Saints have played Aberdeen, Rangers, Celtic and Ladbrokes Premiership leaders Hearts in their past four games, suffering three defeats and taking a point against the Dons.

They have another major test against Celtic in Perth on Sunday but Clark’s confidence remains intact after some testing encounters.

“When the fixtures were released, we knew this was going to be a tough run,” he said.

“We haven’t got the results we’ve wanted, but performances have been pleasing so hopefully we can keep that performance level on Sunday.

“It’s one of those ones where you know it’s probably going to be busier than normal. But there is no easy fixture in this league, you are always expecting to be busy at some point.

“But you do look at the fixtures and think you could be in for a busy couple of weeks.”

Saints had racked up seven points from their first four matches before starting the aforementioned run and Clark is optimistic over their chances of making an impact on the league this season.

“It’s been not a bad start,” he said. “Obviously we would have liked to have seen games out when we’ve been ahead like against Aberdeen but we have points on the board and that’s the aim at the start of the season.

“Going into Sunday we need to be on top of our game and try and convert chances if we get them.”