Kevin James, the St Johnstone captain, has been hit by knee injury again.

The 32-year-old centre-half played just seven games last term because of the injury, which flared up again during Saturday's defeat to Dunfermline.

He underwent a minor operation to fix cartilage damage earlier this week. The latest setback could leave him sidelined for up to six weeks.

"Last season was a total write-off with my knee, it ruined the whole campaign," said James. "Now I can't believe this has happened again, it's just my luck."

Meanwhile, Derek McInnes, the St Johnstone manager, has added to his midfield options by signing Nick McCoy until the end of the year after an earlier trial period for the 21-year-old former Cardiff City and MK Dons player.