St Mirren made it three wins from three in 2022 as Connor Ronan's fourth goal of the season gave us all three points against Aberdeen. 

It was a moment of quality from the Irishman in a game that didn't have much of it with Saints making the perfect return from the winter break so far. 

Jim Goodwin made three changes to the side that defeated Ayr United in the Scottish Cup on Saturday with Alan Power, Jamie McGrath and Eamonn Brophy coming in for Ethan Erhahon, Kyle McAllister and Kristian Dennis. 

A bright start from the Buddies saw an early penalty appeal after Greg Kiltie had nutmegged Scott Brown and sent a dangerous ball across the face of the box inside the first 30 seconds. David Bates cleared with his head but the nearby Saints players were adamant it came off his hand. The resulting corner saw Jay Henderson fires a half-volley over the bar from the edge of the area. Two minutes later Saints came close again from another when Marcus Fraser headed inches by the post. 

Aberdeen's grew into the game but didn't create anything to trouble Jak Alnwick until the final minute of the opening 45. While Lewis Ferguson had gone close when let fly from 20 yards with a vicious strike which curled just by the far post, it was Calvin Ramsay's effort just before the break that forced the Saints goalkeeper to tip over.  

The Dons started the second-half the stronger with captain Brown curling over from 20 yards early into the second 45. Brown was involved again a few minutes later when he looked to take advantage of a mix-up in the Saints defence but Scott Tanser was able to clear off the line.

Saints were sparked into life just after the hour-mark when Ronan slammed home the opener. It looked like the chance was gone when Kiltie's ball across the box missed everyone but Ronan was able to recover the ball before shifting on to his right foot and firing into the far corner with a beautiful curling strike. 

Connor Ronan slams home the winner (Image: Jeff Holmes)

In a match of few chances one goal would be enough to secure the points for Jim Goodwin's men as they moved to within three points of the top six. 

Full-Time: St Mirren 1-0 Aberdeen

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Tanser, Power, Ronan (Erhahon 78), Henderson, Kiltie, McGrath, Brophy (Greive 72)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Tait, Flynn, Reid, McAllister, Dennis, Erwin

Aberdeen: Lewis, Ramsay (Kennedy 78), McCrorie, Bates, Campbell, Ojo, Brown, Ferguson, Jenks (McLennan 73), Hedges (Emmanuel-Thomas 62), Ramirez
Subs Not Used: Woods, Gallagher, McGeouch, Barron, Milne

Referee: Grant Irvine
Assistant Referee: Graeme Stewart
Assistant Referee: Steven Traynor
Fourth Official: William Collum

Attendance: 4,829

St Mirren will face Kelty Hearts in the Fifth Round of the Scottish Cup after a routine win over Ayr United at Somerset Park.  

Kyle McAllister and Greg Kiltie scored first-half goals to secure Saints' place in the next round to face a Kelty side that defeated last season's Scottish Cup winners St Johnstone. 

Despite a bright start from the hosts that saw James Maxwell drag wide with only 30 seconds on the clock, it was Jim Goodwin's side who took the lead. McAllister headed home after being met by at the back stick by Scott Tanser. 

Saints took a grip on the match and we were well on top in the opening exchanges as they searched for a second. It nearly came on 17 minutes when skipper Joe Shaughnessy got on the end of a dangerous Kiltie ball across the face of the box, but the home side managed to scramble clear for a corner. A minute later Connor Ronan was a whisker away from making it two with a half-volley from range. 

The Buddies would double their lead on 24 minutes when Kiltie netted his first goal for the Saints. The midfielder - who was unlucky to see one disallowed in Tuesday's win against Dundee United - raced on to a lovely pass from Jay Henderson and made his way into the box before slotting beyond Aidan McAdams. 

Greg Kiltie slotted home his first goal for the Saints to put us 2-0 up (Image: Allan Picken)

A dominant first-half performance saw us go into the break 2-0 ahead and the second-half was similar stuff as Goodwin's men looked to stretch their lead. McAdams made two good stops in the space of four minutes just after the hour mark to deny Ronan and Kiltie.

Those two opportunities were the first of four in a 10 minute spell of relentless Saints pressure. Shaughnessy should have scored when he was found unmarked in the box by Henderson, but bulleted the header over from close-range and then, in his final act of the game before being substituted, Kiltie drove a strike inches by the far post from an angle. 

Ayr United introduced Fraser Bryden and Tomi Adeloye as they looked to find a way back into the match but couldn't muster up anything to worry the Buddies who will face League Two league leaders Kelty Hearts in the Fifth Round. 

Full-Time: Ayr United 0-2 St Mirren

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Tanser, Henderson, Ronan, Erhahon (Flynn 54), Kiltie (Power 68), McAllister, Dennis (Greive 62)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Tait, Millar, Reid, Erwin, Brophy

Ayr United: McAdams, Muirhead, McGinty (c), Baird, Houston, Murdoch, Maxwell (O'Connor 46), Reading, Gondoh (Bryden 72), McKenzie, Moffat (Adeloye 72)
Subs Not Used: Albinson, Ecrepont, Fjortoft, McAllister, Chalmers, Afolabi

Referee: David Dickinson
Assistant Referee: David Doig
Assistant Referee: Jonathan Bell

St Mirren got 2022 off to a winning start as goals from Jay Henderson and Eamonn Brophy saw Saints defeat Dundee United at Tannadice.

It was a first win in 12 for Jim Goodwin's men as they won for the first time since October. 

Saints were dealt an early blow when Kristian Dennis, who was due to start up-front on his own, had to pull out during the warm-up and had to be replaced by Brophy, while Jamie McGrath was left out of the squad. 

But the Buddies started brightly with Greg Kiltie having the first real chance of the match on 10 minutes. The 25-year-old shot from distance but saw his strike beaten away by United goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist who got both his hands behind the effort. 

Saints good start was rewarded on 15 minutes when Jay Henderson gave Jim Goodwin's men the lead in spectacular fashion. The St Mirren Academy graduate played a lovely one-two with Kiltie before rifling into the top corner from 20 yards to score his first goal for the Buddies. 

Jay Henderson scored his first senior goal in style to put St Mirren ahead (Image: Jeff Holmes)

It looked like birthday boy Kiltie had doubled Saints lead just five minutes later when he drilled low beyond Siegrist, but a late flag from the linesman denied Kiltie a first St Mirren goal. The midfielder was onside and it can only be assumed that the linesman believed that Brophy - who may have been in an offside position - had blocked the view of the United goalkeeper.

Jak Alnwick showed great reactions with around 10 minutes of the half remaining when he kept Charles Dunne's wayward clearance out of the net. Dylan Levitt's ball across from the right was first met by Charlie Mulgrew before Dunne swiped a foot at it which took it goalward. The Saints goalkeeper threw both hands at it to push away with the Buddies manage to get it clear.

Saints claims for a penalty were denied in the final minute of the first-half when Kiltie went down under a challenge from Jeandro Fuchs with referee Alan Muir unmoved. 

After a good opening 45 for the Buddies, it was the home side who started the second-half the stronger of the two. Alnwick was a full stretch early after the restart to push away a Mulgrew free-kick from 25 yards. 

Alnwick again did well to deny Mulgrew on 55 minutes when he saved from close-range to keep the Buddies ahead. Saints were given a let-off when United were denied a penalty after the ball appeared to strike the arm of Alan Power in the box.

After handling the United pressure, the Buddies doubled their lead on the hour mark when Brophy scored his sixth goal of the season from close-range. The striker was laid it on a plate when Kiltie rolled the ball across the face of goal for Brophy to knock into the net. 

Eamonn Brophy doubled Saints lead (Image: Jeff Holmes)

United pulled a goal back on 73 minutes when Power scored an own-goal as he turned substitute Kieran Freeman's low cross beyond Alnwick.

The momentum was with the home side as they searched for an equaliser. Alnwick made a terrific stop all full stretch to turn Freeman's effort away while Mulgrew sent an effort just over from 35 yards out in the closing minutes. But Saints saw it out to ensure all three points head back to Paisley.

Full-Time: Dundee United 1-2 St Mirren

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Tanser, Power, Erhahon, Henderson (McAllister 90), Kiltie (Greive 88), Ronan, Brophy (Flynn 83)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Urminsky, Tait, Millar, Erwin

Dundee United: Siegrist, Mulgrew, Neilson (Freeman 68), Edwards (c), McMann, Fuchs (Clark 68), Levitt, Harkes, Niskanen (Watt 59), Pawlett (Glass 82), McNulty
Subs Not Used: Eriksson, Sporle, Butcher, Mochrie, Appere

Referee: Alan Muir
Assistant Referee: David Roome
Assistant Referee: David Doig
Fourth Official: Grant Irvine

St Mirren were defeated in the final game of 2021 as the Buddies lost 2-0 to Rangers at Ibrox.

Scott Wright and Alfredo Morelos scored in the first-half to give the league leaders all three points as we head into the winter break. 

Jim Goodwin was able to welcome Jak Alnwick, Ryan Flynn, Alan Power, Ethan Erhahon and Jamie McGrath back into the squad after missing the midweek draw with Celtic.

But Rangers dominated early with Ianis' Hagi's strike deflected on the edge of the area an Alnwick was brave to gather the spinning ball ahead of Morelos. The Colombian striker headed over from close range six minutes later after getting on the end of a Borna Barisic cross from the left.

Rangers early pressure told with the Ibrox side taking the lead on 14 minutes when Wright headed home following James Tavernier's corner. Alnwick got a hand on it but could only claw away after the ball had crossed the line. 

Tavernier almost turned from provider to goalscorer on 20 minutes when his deflected strike went inches by the post on 20 minutes.

Saints had a good opportunity on 24 minutes when Curtis Main was fouled by Connor Goldson on the edge of the Rangers box with the Light Blues defender going into the book for his challenge. McGrath stepped up to take for the Buddies but had his effort blocked by the defensive wall.

Rangers doubled their advantage three minutes later when Morelos slammed home from close range. The striker had seen his header well saved by Alnwick, but he was the quickest on the follow-up to put the home side 2-0 in front. 

The Saints goalkeeper was forced into another powerful stop from Morelos with less than 10 minutes of the half remaining as Rangers continued their pressure. It was the first of two saves in a minute for Alnwick with the stopper down to save from Joe Aribo 60 seconds later. Morelos almost scored his second when he headed Ryan Kent's cross just wide as the first-half drew to a close. 

Saints won their first corner of the match early in the second-half but couldn't make use of the rare opportunity. Tanser's ball in was headed clear and Rangers went on the counter with skipper Joe Shaughnessy booked for pulling back Wright. Barisic stepped up to take the resultant free-kick and curled into the side-netting. 

The home side almost added a third just after the hour mark when Wright cracked the post from inside the area before Barisic fired the follow-up over from the edge of the area. 10 minutes later Alnwick made a good save to push away a powerful Tavernier strike from 20 yards. 

The game fizzled out with Rangers' two first-half goals enough to see them take the points.

Full-Time: Rangers 2-0 St Mirren

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Henderson, Flynn (Offord 80), Power, Erhahon, Tanser, McGrath (Kiltie 74), Main (Dennis 56)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Millar, Reid, Erwin

Rangers: McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Bassey, Barisic, Kamara, Aribo, Hagi (Sakala 68), Wright, Kent (Arfield 68), Morelos
Subs Not Used: McLaughlin, Simpson, Patterson, Davis, Bacuna

Referee: Steven McLean
Assistant Referee: Alan Mulvanny
Assistant Referee: Graham McNeillie
Fourth Official: Colin Steven

A valiant St Mirren display saw Jim Goodwin's severely depleted side take a point against Celtic. 

Despite missing several players and requesting a postponement from the SPFL, the match went ahead. Saints were without Jak Alnwick, Jamie McGrath, Conor McCarthy, Richard Tait, Connor Ronan, Ethan Erhahon, Alan Power, Ryan Flynn, Kyle McAllister, Kristian Dennis, Lee Erwin and Eamonn Brophy.

17-year-old Kieran Offord made his debut, while 16-year-old Dylan Reid made just his third start for the Buddies. Jay Henderson also made his first appearance since August with Dean Lyness coming in as goalkeeper for his first league appearance since February. 

St Mirren Academy Graduate Kieran Offord made his first-team debut (Image: Allan Picken)

Lyness would probably have been expecting a busy evening against Ange Postecoglou's side and so it would prove to be for the Saints goalie in the opening stages of the match. He made a terrific save to deny Michael Johnston on eight minutes after the Celtic winger evaded a number of challenges as he jinked into the Buddies box. His strike was pushed away by the strong hands of Lyness. 

Four minutes later Lyness brilliantly turned away a long-range Nir Bitton free-kick. The Celtic midfielder fired towards the keeper's right-hand post with the stand-in at full stretch to get a hand on it.

Saints grew in confidence as the half worn on. The Buddies couldn't force home through a ruck of bodies and from the resultant corner Charles Dunne skinned Liel Abada and Tom Rogic before slamming into the side net. 

Celtic had the vast majority of the ball in the second-half but weren't really troubling Lyness in the Saints net. The visitors were restricted to Johnston volleying into the arms of the Saints goalkeeper on 48 minutes while Callum McGregor's curling effort for distance was gathered at the second attempt on 65 minutes. 

Joe Shaughnessy had to clear off the line on 68 minutes, but Saints best chance of the game came less than 60 seconds later on the counter. Henderson broke forward and slipped the ball to Curtis Main who fired low into the arms of Celtic goalkeeper Scott Bain. 

The visitors would go close again with Abada failing to get on to a McGregor ball across the box before substitute Josip Juranovic curled a free-kick just wide. But the Buddies held on to take a share of the spoils heading into Christmas. 

Full-Time: St Mirren 0-0 Celtic

St Mirren: Lyness, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Millar, Henderson, Reid, Kiltie, Tanser, Offord (McManus 88), Main
Subs Not Used: Urminsky, Taylor, Jack, MacDonald, Kenny

Celtic: Bain, Ralston, Welsh, Carter-Vickers, Scales (Taylor 89), Bitton (Shaw 80), McGregor (c), Johnston, Rogic, Moffat (Juranovic 61), Abada
Subs Not Used: Hazard, McCarthy, Henderson, Montgomery

Referee: David Munro
Assistant Referee: Ralph Gordon
Assistant Referee: Jonathan Bell
Fourth Official: Lloyd Wilson

Attendance: 6,596

When Saints and Hibs met in September, Joe Shaughnessy scored a late goal to give the Buddies a point. Fast forward three months and the Saints skipper repeated the trick at a wet and windy SMiSA Stadium.

The first half was rather forgettable aside from Hibs' Kevin Nisbet twice heading straight at Saints goalie Jak Alnwick. Early in the second half the visitors opened the scoring, Josh Campbell in the right place to pounce after Martin Boyle's shot had been blocked by Marcus Fraser.

That looked like being enough to give the visitors victory, but with just a few minutes to go Shaughnessy popped up to convert Scott Tanser's cross and earn the Buddies a draw.

Curtis Main was chosen to lead the Saints attack following the injury to Eamonn Brophy with Greg Kiltie coming in for Connor Ronan. It was no surprise to see changes to the Hibs side after ex Saints boss Jack Ross left during the week, red cards for Paul Hanlon and former Buddie Paul McGinn ruling them out. Lewis Stevenson, Alex Gogic, Chris Cadden and former Paisley favourite Darren McGregor all started.

Hibs threatened early on when a mistake from Charles Dunne allowed Nisbet to send Jamie Murphy racing through, his shot being turned behind by Alnwick. The corner that followed led to a bit of a scramble before Nisbet's header was easily saved by the Saints goalie. We then had to wait the best part of 20 minutes for the next – and final – meaningful attempt of the half. It was rather similar to the previous one too as Nisbet again headed straight at Alnwick.

Saints perked up after the break but fell behind from a counter attack. Murphy found Boyle in space and while his shot was cut out by Marcus Fraser, the ball sat up perfectly for Josh Campbell and he slammed it home to the delight of the travelling fans behind the goal. The Buddies forced a corner as they looked for a quick equaliser, however Joe Shaughnessy at the back post put it well wide.

Anyone hoping that brief flurry of excitement would continue was sadly mistaken as penalty box action returned to being rare. Saints fans were given hope of a goal a quarter of an hour from the end when McGregor fouled sub Kristian Dennis just outside the box, however McGrath sent his free-kick well over. A few minutes later came a great Buddies chance when Tanser's found the unmarked game in the box but Matt Macey got down to turn it behind.

With less than five minutes to go Tanser delivered another tremendous ball from the left and this time the end result was far more satisfying, Shaughnessy arriving to fire past Macey and draw Saints level. The visitors tried to restore their lead with Alnwick doing well to tip behind a drive from Christian Doidge. In stoppage time Saints thought they should have had a penalty when Dennis went down under Gogic's challenge, however the officials were unmoved and the points were shared.

Full-Time: St Mirren 1-1 Hibernian

Joe Shaughnessy celebrates after earning Saints a point (Image: Allan Picken)

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Millar (McAllister 65), Flynn (Dennis 60), Power, Tanser, Kiltie (Ronan 60), McGrath, Main
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Tait, Erhahon, Erwin

Hibernian: Macey, Cadden, Porteous, McGregor, Stevenson, Gogic, Campbell, Newell (c), Boyle, Murphy (Wright 72), Nisbet (Doidge 83)
Subs Not Used: Dabrowksi, Doig, Gullan, Allan, Scott

Referee: Kevin Clancy
Assistant Referee: Graeme Leslie
Assistant Referee: Steven Traynor
Fourth Official: Scott Lambie

Attendance: 4,698

St Mirren were beaten by Aberdeen as the Dons took all three points on a wet and windy day in the Granite city.

Marley Watkins and Christian Ramirez netted early goals to put the home side in control. Scott Tanser pulled one back for Saints before half-time, but Watkins scored again to restore Aberdeen's two goal advantage before half-time. Ramirez would also score his second in the second-half to secure a 4-1 win for the Dons. 

Jim Goodwin made three changes from the team that drew 0-0 with Ross County on Wednesday night. Captain Joe Shaughnessy returned for suspension, while Matt Millar and Ryan Flynn also came into the side in place of Richard Tait, Kyle McAllister and Kristian Dennis. 

Saints had the first big chance of the match when Eamonn Brophy sprung the offside trap to run through on goal. Aberdeen defender David Bates raced alongside the forward and made an inch perfect challenge to help turn the effort by the post. 

But despite that positive start, it was the Dons who took an early lead when Marley Watkins scored on seven minutes. The striker rose the highest to meet a Funso Ojo free-kick and while his initial effort was saved by Jak Alnwick, he reacted quickest on the follow-up to fire home. 

And two minutes later the home side doubled their advantage. Jay Emmanuel Thomas' effort was deflected into the path of Ramirez who scooped home from six yards out to put the Dons 2-0 in front after only nine minutes. 

Saints could have pulled a goal back on 18 minutes but for Bates again coming to the Dons rescue. Jamie McGrath's cross met an unmarked Millar but the Australian's header was cleared off the line by the Aberdeen defender. 

Millar was then twice foiled by Aberdeen goalkeeper Joe Lewis as the Buddies looked for a way back into the match. The stopper turned away Millar's strike after he was sent through by McGrath and then pushed away his header from the resulting corner. In between those chances Saints were forced into a substitution with Curtis Main coming on for the injured Brophy.

The Buddies would pull a goal back when Scott Tanser got on to a low Millar ball to sweep beyond Lewis three minutes before the interval. But less than 60 seconds later the Dons went 3-1 ahead when Watkins scored his second of the afternoon. 

St Mirren were denied what looked like a stonewall penalty on 50 minutes when Alan Power was felled in the box. It looked clear-cut, but referee Willie Collum ignored the Saints shouts.

Alnwick made a big save just after the hour mark to keep the scoreline down when he got a strong hand to a low drive from Dons substitute Teddy Jenks. The Saints goalkeeper then made a good double stop to deny Ojo a few minutes later before denying Ryan Hedges with a great block on 69 minutes. 

Aberdeen's pressure would tell and they did add a fourth on 71 minutes as Ramirez grabbed his second off the afternoon when he knocked Jenks' ball across the box home from a few yards out to seal a 4-1 win for Stephen Glass' side.

Full-Time: Aberdeen 4-1 St Mirren

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Millar (Dennis 67), Flynn, Power, Tanser, McGrath, Ronan (Erhahon 75), Brophy (Main 29)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Tait, Kiltie, McAllister

Aberdeen: Lewis, Bates, McCrorie, Ojo, Hayes, Brown (c), Hedges (McLennan 78), Ferguson, Watkins (McGinn 83), Ramirez, Emmanuel-Thomas (Jenks 58)
Subs Not Used: Woods, Gallagher, Samuel, Campbell

Referee: William Collum
Assistant Referee: Calum Spence
Assistant Referee: Alastair Mather
Fourth Official: Steven Kirkland

Attendance: 8,002

St Mirren and Ross County played out a goalless draw at the SMiSA Stadium.  

A frustrating night saw Jim Goodwin's side create plenty of opportunities throughout the 90 minutes but the Buddies couldn't find the goal to take the points.

Saints made two changes from the side that lost at Tynecastle on Saturday. Joe Shaughnessy missed out due to suspension, while Ryan Flynn dropped to the bench. In came Kyle McAllister and Kristian Dennis. Jak Alnwick took the captain's armband in Shaughnessy's absence. 

County had the best of the chances in the opening 10 minutes of the match. A Blair Spittal hit from 20 yards deflected off Richard Tait and could have ended up anywhere but thankfully went over. Alnwick then made a brilliant one-handed stop to deny Dominic Samuel the opener on nine minutes. Charles Dunne misjudged the flight of the ball with the County forward racing on to it. He shaped for the shot on the edge of the box with the strike turned round the post by the strong hand of the Saints goalkeeper.

Chances were at a premium in the opening 45 minutes with Eamonn Brophy having the best chance of the first-half for the Buddies. The striker - looking for his first Saints goal at the SMiSA Stadium - latched on to a through ball from Alan Power, but had his goalbound effort blocked by Jake Vokins. It wasn't quite on the goal-line but it wasn't far away from it.

Dennis had two big opportunities early in the second-half. The first, on 52 minutes, saw the English forward head Connor Ronan's cross inches by the right-hand post. Four minutes later the ball fell invitingly for the striker but he couldn't force home from close range. 

It was all Saints in the first 20 minutes of the second 45 with Ronan forcing a good save from Maynard-Brewer before the County 'keeper somehow kept out a header that deflected off Dennis.

Kristian Dennis couldn't force home for Saints (Image: Allan Picken)

Jim Goodwin reacted by making two changes with Eamonn Brophy and Connor Ronan making way for Curtis Main and Greg Kiltie. And the latter almost made an instant impact with his powerful strike from 20 yards turned over the bar by Maynard-Brewer. Main also had a great opportunity with less than 10 minutes remaining after he was sent clear on goal by Dennis. The striker beat the County goalkeeper but had his effort cleared off the line by ex-Saint Keith Watson.

Ross County had a great chance to steal the points with only two minutes of normal time on the clock. But Alnwick made two great stops to deny Spittal and David Cancola as the game finished stalemate.

Full-Time: St Mirren 0-0 Ross County

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Tait, Dunne, McAllister, Power, Ronan (Kiltie 72), Tanser (Millar 79), McGrath, Dennis, Brophy (Main 63)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Erhahon, Flynn, Erwin

Ross County: Maynard-Brewer, Vokins, Cancola, Baldwin, Iacovitti (Watson 34), Randall, Paton, Spittal, Callachan (White 79), Hungbo, Samuel (Tillson 79)
Subs Not Used: Laidlaw, Robertson, Charles-Cook, Burroughs

Referee: David Dickinson
Assistant Referee: Graham McNeillie
Assistant Referee: Stuart Stevenson
Fourth Official: Don Robertson

Attendance: 3,806

St Mirren's five match unbeaten away run came to an end as the Buddies were beaten by Hearts at Tynecastle.

Jim Goodwin's men had plenty of chances but an inspired Craig Gordon performance for the home side coupled with goals from Gary Mackay-Steven and Stephen Kingsley meant Hearts took all the points.

The Buddies were forced into one change from the side that drew with Livingston last week. An injured Conor McCarthy dropped out and was replaced by Charles Dunne who made his first start since August.

Saints started well in the capital and Hearts goalkeeper Gordon had to make two good saves in a minute to deny the visitors the opener on 20 minutes. The Scotland international first beat away a Brophy drive from a tight angle, before making a terrific stop to deny Dunne from the resultant corner. 

Saints were dealt a blow just after the half-hour mark when Scott Tanser went down inside the St Mirren box and couldn't continue after treatment from the physio. 

The Buddies almost took the lead with three minutes of the first-half remaining when Joe Shaughnessy's strike was deflected goalward by Hearts defender Michael Smith. Gordon made a block with his feet to stop the ball creeping over the line.

In the final moments of the first-half Saints did have the ball in the net when Richard Tait finished neatly beyond Gordon but was denied by the linesman's offside flag. It was a tight call with Tait looking like he may have been in line with one of the Hearts defenders.

Richard Tait had a goal ruled out for offside (Image: Craig Brown)

The home side started the second 45 on the ascendancy with Jak Alnwick having to make a terrific save to block Gary Mackay-Steven's attempt before Smith also had a follow-up strike blocked by the Saints defence.

But Saints quickly came into it and could've taken the lead with three big opportunities in the space of a minute. McGrath was denied by a wonderful one-handed stop from Hearts goalkeeper Gordon and from a corner soon after, Marcus Fraser had a header blocked on the line and no one in black and white could follow-up. Moments after Gordon made another big save to turn over a McAllister dig from the edge of the box.

And those passed up chances would come back to haunt the Buddies a couple of minutes later when Hearts took the lead. Mackay-Steven swept home from 12 yards to put the home side in front just after the hour mark.

Hearts doubled their advantage with 15 minutes to go. Stephen Kingsley scored a stunning free-kick from 25 yards to put the home side 2-0 in front and secure the three points for Robbie Neilson's side.

Saints misery was compounded in the final minute of stoppage time when Shaughnessy was shown a second yellow card. 

Full-Time: Hearts 2-0 St Mirren

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, Shaughnessy (c), Dunne, Tait, Flynn (Kiltie 81), Power, Tanser (McAllister 34), McGrath, Ronan (Dennis 73), Brophy
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Millar, Erhahon, Main

Hearts: Gordon, Smith, Souttar, Halkett, Kingsley, Devlin, Baningime (Haring 86), Halliday, McKay, Mackay-Steven (Ginnelly 70), Boyce (Gnanduillet 80)
Subs Not Used: Stewart, McEneff, Woodburn, Cochrane

Referee: Alan Muir
Assistant Referee: Ralph Gordon
Assistant Referee: Jonathan Bell
Fourth Official: John Beaton 

A late Livingston equaliser denied St Mirren all three points at the SMiSA Stadium. 

An incredible Jamie McGrath strike had given Saints a second-half lead before Nicky Devlin levelled in the dying minutes to grab Livi a share of the spoils. 

The visitors started the brighter and Cristian Montano really should have had the Lions in front on 10 minutes. The forward was there to meet a Devlin cross from the right but bulleted the header wide from close range. 

After a slow start Saints began to take better control of the match and could have been ahead after 17 minutes. Marcus Fraser got his head on to a Scott Tanser corner which lead to a stramash with Jim Goodwin's men unable to force home. Five minutes later the Saints had another good opportunity when Richard Tait's cut-back found Alan Power in the box, but the Irishman scooped over. 

The Buddies were dealt a blow on 34 minutes when Conor McCarthy was forced to hobble off after making a challenge on the touchline. He was replaced by Charles Dunne who made his first appearance since August. 

Chances were at a premium in the first-half but Jak Alnwick had to be alert a few minutes before the interval. Odin Bailey latched on to Bruce Anderson's takedown and the winger drove forward and saw a powerful effort from 20 yards pushed away by the Saints goalkeeper. 

As they did in the first-half, Livingston started the second 45 the stronger of the two with Montano having another opportunity when he forced an important save from Alnwick on 57 minutes.

Saints were struggling to create chances and Jim Goodwin responded by making a change just after the hour mark when he replaced Connor Ronan with Kristian Dennis.

McGrath - back from international duty with the Republic of Ireland - wasn't far away a few minutes after the change with an audacious attempt. The midfielder brought the ball down on his chest and volleyed just wide. Six minutes later it would be the Irishman who gave us the lead in stunning fashion. The 25-year-old spotted Max Stryjek off his line and lifted it over the goalkeeper from 25 yards to put us ahead. 

Jamie McGrath celebrates after putting St Mirren ahead (Image: Allan Picken)

It looked like that one goal would be enough to secure three points for the Buddies but the visitors scored a leveller in the final two minutes of normal time. Livingston captain Nicky Devlin drilled home from the edge of the area to deny St Mirren the win.  

There was still time for drama in the dying embers of the game when the Saints players screamed for what looked to be a stonewall penalty in the final seconds when the ball struck the arm of Harris Panayiotou but the referee blew for full-time. 

Full-Time: St Mirren 1-1 Livingston

St Mirren: Alnwick, Fraser, McCarthy (Dunne 34), Shaughnessy (c), Tait, Flynn, Power, Tanser, Ronan (Dennis 61), McGrath, Brophy (Main 78)
Subs Not Used: Lyness, Erhahon, Kiltie, McAllister

Livingston: Stryjek, Devlin (c), Parkes, Fitzwater, Montano (Forrest 75), Bailly, Holt, Shinnie (Longridge 75), Omeonga, McMillan, Anderson (Panayiotou 75)
Subs Not Used: Maley, Sibbald, Penrice, Kabia

Referee: Steven McLean
Assistant Referee: David McGeachie
Assistant Referee: Craig Ferguson
Fourth Official: Calum Scott