If Rangers are seeking responsibility for their first league defeat at Paisley in 13 years, they should look no further than their nearest mirror.
In a week in which the Ibrox club wrote to the SFA pointing the finger that a penalty had not been awarded in the Premier Sports Cup final, there was no conceivable way of deflecting blame for last night's defeat. It left Philippe Clement's side behind Celtic at the top of the Premiership by 12 points.
The last time they lost a game to St Mirren in the league was at Christmas 2011, when Aaron Mooy scored the winning goal on a windy and rainy night.
By Clement's own admission, he didn't see this coming after four league wins in a row. Even a part-time hair dryer didn't fix it.
Oisin Smyth opened the scoring from the penalty spot after a spray of blood hit Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland's head. Thereafter, the Saints were forced to weather another festive storm as Danilo tied the visitors after 61 minutes.
Congratulations to Stephen Robinson. On a night of excellent game management, the St Mirren boss will never make three better substitutions than he did here.
Danilo's despondency sums up the entire Rangers team after their disastrous defeat in Paisley
Caolan Boyd-Munce scores St MIrren's final goal
Philippe Clement looks lonely after dramatic 2-1 defeat
Their substitutes combined to score the winning goal in the third minute of added time. Jonah Ayunga got the ball rolling by picking Dujon Sterling's pocket deep in the opposition half. Galloping down the flank, he brilliantly made a low pass towards Evan Mooney. The 17-year-old left the ball perfectly for Caolan Boyd-Munce to hit an excellent low shot into the bottom corner to score the winner. Also a word of praise for another 17-year-old substitute, Callum Penman, whose late header on Ellery Balcombe was so relaxed he could have been lying on his sofa watching Gavin and Stacey.
In the fifth meeting of these teams on Boxing Day, the Rangers had won the previous four by an aggregate score of 9-1. Defeat here will raise questions about Clement's decision to rest Danilo and Nico Raskin during an abysmal first half when the home team deservedly took the lead.
By reducing the gap on Celtic to nine points last weekend, momentum was lost on a day when the league title surely followed suit.
Lack of sleep offered the only logical explanation for the way Butland dropped the opener. Returning to goal after missing the 1-0 win over Dundee to attend the birth of his daughter, he was guilty of blind panic when he ran off his line to hit Greg Kiltie after half an hour.
Chasing a long ball clearance up and down from Saints goalkeeper Balcombe, Kiltie had been careful to stay on the side, doing just enough to put his body between Butland and the ball. The Rangers number one took the bait.
The VAR checked for offside before deciding to uphold the original decision. Smyth sent Butland the wrong way and St Mirren had the advantage.
Only Celtic had scored more first-half goals than St Mirren this season. Strike number 16 offered another problem for a Rangers team that had failed to win any of the three games in which they conceded the first away goal in the Premiership. This would be demonstrated again here.
Adding fuel to the fire is a deepening defensive crisis ahead of the Old Firm clash on January 2.
Oisin Smyth gave the Buddies a perfect start with his converted penalty after half an hour.
Danilo tied Rangers after shooting on goal in the 61st minute
The Ibrox striker walks away delighted after scoring 1-1 in Paisley
Leon Balogun started alongside Dujon Sterling at the heart of the defence, lasting just 16 minutes before stopping with a calf or Achilles injury in a race with Toyosi Olusanya. Balogun held on well enough to prevent the striker from making the most of his discomfort, before falling to the ground in obvious pain.
With John Souttar sidelined for several weeks and Neraysho Kasanwirjo's season now over, Balogun's defeat was a setback Clement could not do without. Sterling and Robin Propper are now the last men standing, the first to blame for St Mirren's victory.
After a disappointing first half performance, Clement made two changes. Danilo and Raskin had left the team in place of Nedim Bajrami and Connor Barron in a well-intentioned attempt to give them some rest. In hindsight, it was evident that this team simply isn't good enough to give the best players a break.
Raskin, in particular, moved the ball faster, getting things moving. The Rangers now posed a greater threat. James Tavernier's hard-hitting, sinking free kick from 20 yards went wide by a yard. Danilo's deflected shot gave Balcombe the chance to save. The visitors' situation was now urgent.
The St Mirren crossbar is probably still shaking from Vaclav Cerny's powerful shot and when Balcombe denied Danilo at the far post, the pressure increased. Substitute
Boyd-Munce was going to have the last laugh when he scored in stoppage time.
Submarine Boyd-Munce was delighted by the adoration of St Mirren fans after his goal in added time.
The dam finally broke just after an hour. St Mirren were unable to clear their lines and when Raskin failed to finish from eight yards, Danilo pounced to finish the job.
By pressuring substitutes Ayunga and Alex Iacovitti into action, Robinson made his team pose a counter-attacking threat again. The Rangers' momentum began to slow and slow.
The home team hit the woodwork when a corner went over the unconvincing Butland, causing a flutter of panic before Propper turned the ball against his own crossbar.
When Boyd-Munce scored a brilliant winning goal, SMISA Stadium erupted in festive cheer. They had waited a long time for another night like this.