St Mirren booked their place in the final of the IRN-BRU Cup with a fantastic second half performance to see of The New Saints. 

The Buddies scored four goals in the last 30 minutes to see off the Welsh side and set up a final clash with Dundee United.

It was a scrappy start to the match, though Stevie Mallan had three chances for the Buddies within the opening 20 minutes or so. His first came after just three minutes when he picked the ball up deep in the New Saints half before unleashing a shot that nestled safely into the arms of Paul Harrison who was keeping guard for TNS. 

The midfielder then had a good opportunity on the 15th minute with a free kick from what has become known in Paisley as 'Mallan territory'. But he lashed the ball over the bar, as he did a few minutes later when he was laid off on the edge of the box by captain, Stephen McGinn. 

The skipper then went close on the half hour mark when he picked the ball up after a Sutton knockdown. He took a touch to compose himself before seeing his effort curl just over the bar. 

But the visitors soon grabbed a foothold in the match and should have been ahead when Ryan Brobbel's attempt was saved by Billy O'Brien. Soon after they won a corner from which Wes Fletcher should have scored as he header the ball off the outside of the post. 

The warning signs were there and TNS would strike with just a few minutes left of the first half. It was a Brobbel again who burst through and curled the ball sweetly beyond O'Brien to send the small contingent of Welsh supporters wild. 

Half Time: St Mirren 0-1 The New Saints

The Buddies came out of the traps after the break with half time substitute Lewis Morgan causing problems down the left side. His trickery won St Mirren a corner and a free kick with neither coming to anything. But it was a show of intent after a disappointing first half and got the fans 

The match burst into life on the hour when the captain showed the way as he levelled the scores. It was a terrific strike from McGinn, his first since returning to the club in January, to put the home side back ahead. 

Saints, buoyed by the equaliser, started to turn the screw with McGinn at the forefront. And the game was set to swing in St Mirren's favour when the captain was chopped down 25 yards from goal by Steven Saunders. The TNS defender picked up a red card for the foul and gave away a free kick in the process. Up stepped Mallan who curled it a low into the left hand corner of the net to put St Mirren ahead. 

The Buddies were ahead and had a man advantage which they would really press home in the closing stages of the match. With just over 10 minutes to play the hosts won a penalty kick after Aeron Edwards hand-balled Morgan's attempted cross into the box. John Sutton stepped up to take but Harrison was equal to it as he dived the right way and pushed the ball wide. 

However, that couldn't dampen things for the Buddies - or Sutton himself - as he scored just a minute after the miss. Kyle Magennis drove into the box before cutting the ball back for the Englishman, who would make no mistake as he cannoned the ball into the net. 

And there was still time for Saints to add a fourth to cap off a fine second half display. Mallan laid off a free kick on the left side to the unmarked Rory Loy who fired it low beyond Harrison to put the seal on a good days work for the Buddies who will now have a cup final match against Dundee United to look forward to.

Full Time: St Mirren 4-1 The New Saints 

St Mirren: O'Brien, Stelios, Davis, Baird, Eckersley (Irvine 90), McGinn (Fjelde 87), Storie (Morgan 45), Mallan, Magennis, Loy, Sutton
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Webster, Whyte, O'Keefe

TNS: Harrison, Spender, Marriot, Baker, Brobbel (Sergeant 68), Fletcher (Draper 81), Mullan, Saunders, Rawlinson, Cieslewicz (Quigley 68), Edwards
Subs Not Used: Wycherley, Leca, Darlington, Pryce

Referee: Keith Kennedy
Assistant Referee: Joseph Lawson
Assistant Referee: Anthony Cooper
Fourth Official: Greg Aitken

Attendance: 2,044

A late Conor O'Keefe goal sealed a thrilling 4-3 win for the St Mirren U20s over Kilmarnock last night at the Paisley 2021 Stadium.

The young Buds were 2-0 ahead on the half hour mark after goals from Josh Todd and Ryan Watters. Kilmarnock levelled the scores soon after before taking the lead half way through the second half. But Saints weren't to be beaten as O'Keefe scored twice to win the game. 

It was Todd who put Saints ahead as he slipped the ball under the legs of the goalkeeper on 20 minutes after being played through by Kalvin Orsi.

Then, 10 minutes later, O'Keefe was bundled over in the box with the referee pointing to the penalty spot. Watters stepped up and tucked the ball into the corner of the net to double the advantage. 

But just six minutes later the visitors were back on level terms. Jack Paterson pulled their first goal back with a tidy finish from the edge of the box before Killie levelled after a lightening quick break from a Saints corner. 

And they could have been mere moments later when a wicked swerving effort from Adam Frizzell was superbly pushed over the bar by Chris Henry. 

Kilmarnock started the brighter in the second half and were ahead on 66 minutes through Frizzell, who slid in to knock a cross from the left into the net. 

But like Saints lead would only last six minutes, the Killie's only lasted three when O'Keefe lobbed the goalkeeper from narrow angle on the right side. 

With time ticking away a draw looked certain, only for O'Keefe to break through and lob the keeper for a second time with 94 minutes on the clock to secure three points in the most dramatic of circumstances.

The current standings in the SPFL Development League are available here.

St Mirren: Henry, McNaughton, Barclay, Fjelde, Gordon (McDonald, 45), Whyte, Todd, MacPherson, Watters (Pignatiello, 70), Orsi, O'Keefe
Subs Not Used: Willison, Johnston, Fawkes, McKendry

Kilmarnock: Lyle, Webb, Lidington (McFadzean, 57), Queen, Clark, Hawkshaw, Whittaker, Frizzell, Cameron (Morrison, 78), Paterson (Curtis, 62), McLean
Subs Not Used: Dempsie, Kayode, Cobain

Lewis Morgan played the role of super sub as he scored twice after coming off the bench to help St Mirren seal their place in the quarter finals of the Scottish Cup. Cammy Smith opened his account for the Buddies in the first half before Morgan scored a double following Chris Duggan's early second half penalty that had gotten East Fife back on level terms. Duggan scored again from the spot with the very last kick of the ball but it wasn't enough to prevent Saints from making the draw for the last eight.

Saints were in control in the early period though the blustery conditions were making it difficult for both sides. Indeed the wind almost played a massive part with just five minutes on the clock. Stelios Demetriou, making his first start for the Buddies, launched a high ball in search of Rory Loy when the gail blew it over the head of East Fife goalkeeper Ryan Goodfellow who had to chase back and grasp the ball with Loy trying to pounce.

East Fife had a glorious chance to put themselves ahead just before the 20 minute mark through substitute Chris Kane. Initially a corner was headed back out by the Buddies, but only as far as Nicki Paterson who whipped the ball back into the six yard box to meet Kane's head with the defender putting too much on it. 

The home side thought they had the lead as the game approached 30 minutes, only to see it ruled out. The ball was whipped in from a corner but Saints keeper Billy O'Brien was fouled as the ball made it's way into the net. 

And it was Saints who would go ahead mere minutes later after a good old fashioned stramash in the box. The wind was again wreaking havoc when the ball was whipped into the box and East Fife's keeper couldn't gather before the defence failed to clear their lines. Stephen McGinn then had a shot that was blocked before Smith finally poked the ball home with a tidy finish.  

The Buddies were clearly buoyed by the goal and were on the ascendancy as Gary MacKenzie went close to doubling Saints' lead five minutes before half time. The big centre half rose above his East Fife counterpart to get his head on a tremendous Adam Eckersley cross, but it went just by the post.

Half Time: East Fife 0-1 St Mirren

East Fife started after the break well and went close on two occasions early in the second half, in between a good chance for Kyle Magennis. First, Duggan saw a shot from outside the box flash just wide before the home side were certain they were level through Scott Robinson. The forward lobbed O'Brien and had looked to have equalised for his side, only to see Harry Davis slide in and clear just at it looked to creep over the line. 

But it only took them two minutes after this to get on level terms. Davis, the hero moments earlier, fouled Ross Brown in the box leaving the referee with no choice but to award a penalty. Duggan stepped up to take the spot kick and coolly dispatched it beyond O'Brien to make it 1-1.

The hosts looked bright after the goal which prompted Saints manager Jack Ross into action as he introduced John Sutton and Lewis Morgan in place of Loy and Craig Storie. 

It would pay dividends as St Mirren were ahead with 20 minutes to go. Stevie Mallan picked the ball up in the middle of the East Fife half and drove towards goal before delightfully picking out Morgan who finished beyond Goodfellow after creating good space for himself down the left to give the Buddies the lead for the second time in the match.

And it could've been 3-1 just a minute later when Smith found himself in space inside the box but, after getting himself into a shooting position, the forward fired wide.

Saints would make it 3-1 with less than 10 minutes remaining when Morgan scored with a stunning effort to book the Buddies place in the last eight. The 20 year-old picked the ball up around 25 yards from goal before curling it beautifully into the bottom corner beyond the reach of the goalkeeper.

That was all but game over though the hosts would get themselves on the scoresheet again with the final kick of the ball when they won a second penalty. Duggan stepped up once more and make no mistake from the spot again as he sent O'Brien the wrong way. However, as soon as the ball was retrieved from the net, referee Don Robertson blew his whistle and with it confirmed The Buddies place in the next round.

Full Time: East Fife 2-3 St Mirren 

St Mirren: O'Brien, Stelios, Davis, MacKenzie, Eckersley, Storie (Morgan, 66), Magennis, McGinn, Mallan, Smith (Fjelde, 90+1), Loy (Sutton, 57)
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Baird, Irvine, Clarkson

East Fife: Goodfellow, Watt (Kane, 12), Slattery, Page, Kerr, Brown (Insall, 75), Duggan, Smith (Lamont, 66), Robinson, Penrice, Paterson
Subs Not Used: Flockhart, Austin

Referee: Don Robertson
Assistant Referee: Kylie McMullan
Assistant Referee: Stuart Hodge

Attendance: 1,483

A first half 25-yard strike from, Conor O’Keefe, saw the St Mirren Development team leave Hamilton’s SuperSeal stadium with their heads held high but without a single point, after losing 3-1 against Hamilton Accies.

The Accies were off to a flyer when a Hamilton attack in the fourth minute saw a headed shot pushed on to the post and out for a corner in the first minute.

Hamilton remained dominant in possession and harassed the Buddies defence. The Saints could not clear their lines well enough and keeper Chris Henry saved an ambitious shot just four minutes later but could not keep the ball out of the path of Hamilton midfielder Ronan Hughes who pounced to put the ball in the St Mirren net.

The young Buddies grew into the game and began to create attacks from keeping better possession. It took nearly 20 minutes for the visitors to break the deadlock following wave after wave of missed opportunities and careless mistakes.

Josh Todd received the ball, in the 26^th minute of the game, on the left hand side and after a touch to set up the strike from 25 yards; he curled the ball past Darren Jamieson and into the top corner of the Hamilton goal.

St Mirren created more chances and a great ball whipped in from a corner was ruined after the ref stopped play for a foul on a Hamilton defender inside the box. An end-to-end half was finished with an Accies shot that was wide of the mark.

HALF TIME: Hamilton 1-1 St Mirren

The Saints started the second half how they ended the first, with some fine attacking play and flowing possession. But Hamilton regained the lead on the 49^th minute when their first attack of the half put them in front once more through Ryan Tierney.

Two minutes later, Buddies keeper Henry calmly dealt with a cross from a free kick and from there a St Mirren attack was built but unfortunately saw the ball go just wide of the post.

The Paisley team grew from strength to strength as they continued to bombard the Hamilton defence and a great spell of play saw a long pass from left back, neatly controlled pass from O’Keefe’s shoulder.

The touch was so good O’Keefe got a shot away, in the 53^rd minute, after he ran into the box and forced a great save. Accies keeper Jamieson must have been relieved as the thunderous strike from O’Keefe was sure to be his second of the game if it had hit the target.

The game remained tight until the dying minutes when a Hamilton striker was brought down in the box and the referee awarded a penalty with just five minutes left to play. Tierney slotted the penalty away to make it 3-1 to the hosts.

The hard-working Saints could not put away any more of their chances as efforts from Josh Todd were held by the Hamilton goalkeeper.

FULL TIME: Hamilton 3-1 St Mirren

St Mirren couldn't take a valuable three points back to Paisley after drawing 2-2 against Dumbarton away from home this afternoon. The Buddies led twice in the match after goals from David Clarkson and Harry Davis. But Saints were pegged back by a stubborn Sons side who kept up their unbeaten form against St Mirren this season.

It was Cammy Smith, who looked bright in his Saints debut the previous week, who fashioned the first chance of the match when he picked up the ball on the half way line. The forward went bounding forward before an effort from the edge of the area ended up in the arms of Alan Martin in the Dumbarton goal.

Smith thought he had put the Buddies ahead with just 11 minutes on the clock when his deflected effort was cleared off the line. He burst into the box and lashed the ball goalward which saw it cannon off the legs of a Sons defender and loop over Martin only to be scrambled away.

Craig Storie went into the referee's book when he took out a Dumbarton player on the edge of the box after Davis failed to clear his lines. The ball was laid off to Gregor Buchanan who sclaffed the effort high and wide with a shot that may well as have seen the ball end up in the nearby River Clyde.

It was Smith who was integral to Saints going ahead on 35 minutes through Clarkson. The loanee was the recipient of a tremendous cross field pass from Craig Storie and drove into the Sons before a great cross into a dangerous area was flicked home by Clarkson to send the sizeable away support wild. 

Saints were given a reminder of the fragility of a one goal lead just before half time when Sons striker Christian Nade almost put his side on level terms. The striker rose above the Buddies defence to get on the end of a corner that went fractionally wide. 

Half Time: Dumbarton 0-1 St Mirren

Stephen Aitken's side came out showing real intent early on after the break winning a corner. Substitution Tom Lang was up for Dumbarton, but sent his near diving header by the post.

It was a warning sign for St Mirren and Dumbarton would make them pay when they equalised just 10 minutes into the second half. Unlike in the first half, Nade would make no mistake from this corner kick as he bulleted his header beyond Billy O'Brien. The ball was whipped deep into the box with the Frenchman on his own able to force the ball into the net to make it 1-1.

This seemed to stir the St Mirren support and the Buddies eventually started putting the pressure on the home side. Gary MacKenzie, who has proved to be a threat from corners in the last few weeks, rose the highest only to put too much on the header and see it go over.

A few minutes later Saints would be ahead but only after Nade threatened to put Dumbarton ahead when he broke away from the defence and flashed a shot wide. 

Good work on the right hand side won St Mirren a corner. The ball in was cleared but Saints kept the ball in the home teams half and won a free kick. From the free kick debutant Harry Davis headed the Buddies ahead for the second time of the match. 

Dumbarton weren't out of the match though and continued to threaten with Lewis Vaughan going close from long range. And they weren't to be denied with 10 minutes to go when Robert Thomson netted from close range after Saints failed to clear the initial danger.

It was a blow for Jack Ross' side who continued to press into the final few minutes of the match, winning a succession of corners, but ultimately had to settle for a point.

Full Time: Dumbarton 2-2 St Mirren

St Mirren: O'Brien, Irvine, MacKenzie, Davis, Eckersley (Stelios, 73), Magennis, Storie, McGinn, Smith, Morgan (Sutton, 63), Clarkson (Todd, 79)
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Webster, Baird, Fjelde

Dumbarton: Martin, Docherty, Buchanan, Carswell (Vaughan, 55), Thomson, Stanton (Fleming, 55), Harvie, Barr, (Lang, 26) Smith, Stirling, Nade
Subs Not Used: Brown, Gallagher,

Referee: John Beaton
Assistant Referee: Graeme Stewart
Assistant Referee: Daniel McFarlane

Attendance: 1,377

Josh Todd scored twice to secure a 2-1 win for the St Mirren U20s over Dundee United in the SPFL Development League. 

The Englishman's double helped The Buddies come from 1-0 down to win 2-1 on a cold night at the Paisley 2021 Stadium.

Ali Coote had given the visitors the lead after 23 minutes when he smashed a powerful effort beyond Jamie Langfield from the edge of the box. 

Saints pressed for an equaliser before half time and went close when Conor O'Keefe twice forced saves out of Josh Donaldson. 

The leveller came with less than 15 minutes remaining when Todd scored a terrific solo goal.

He picked the ball up in midfield before driving at the Dundee United defence, nutmegging one of their defenders to send himself clean through before sending it into the back of the net.

And the midfielder was at the double less than ten minutes later when he put Saints ahead. A ball was whipped into the box from a free kick on the right hand side to meet the toe of Todd as he beat a ruck of players in the box to prod the ball home. 

But Dundee United had one last chance before St Mirren could claim victory. A foul by Saints' Luke Barclay right on the edge of the area saw Charlie Telfer step up and rifle an effort goalward, only to see it beaten away by Langfield.

The win sees the U20s stay in 14th place in the SPFL Development League level on points with Hearts and Kilmarnock.

Match gallery pictures by Allan Picken – © Allan Picken Photography and John Millar - © millarpictures

Rory Loy's 77th minute goal wasn't enough to stir up a comeback for St Mirren as they lost 2-1 at home to Falkirk.

Peter Houston's side went ahead on 11 minutes with a controversial goal from John Baird. The striker then doubled the Bairns' lead just after the hour mark when he swept home.

Loy got his first goal for The Buddies with a tidy finish that nestled into the back of the next beyond Danny Rogers. But despite Jack Ross' side trying to put pressure on the visitors, it wasn't enough to gain a point as they look to move themselves from the foot of the table.

Saints almost got off to the perfect start though with less than a minute on the clock when new loan signing Cammy Smith almost opened the scoring. The debutant picked up the ball in the middle of the park and drove forward with it before unleashing a shot from outside the box that went whistling by. 

It was a bright start for the Buddies who continued to put on the pressure in the early stages with Rory Loy winning a corner kick after his attempted cross inside the box was blocked. 

However, the visitors were ahead with just 11 minutes on the clock when John Baird opened the scoring. But Saints felt aggrieved by the manner in which it was scored. Falkirk won a throw-in on the left side with Myles Hippolyte running a good 10 or 15 yards further forward before finding Baird who ran through and dispatched the ball beyond Billy O'Brien. The Buddies supporters and coaching staff were left furious as the officials failed to pull the play back despite the Bairns gaining a clear advantage.

Falkirk then started to look dangerous and could've stretched their lead soon after with Fraser Aird and Hippolyte both going close. 

Saints were dealt a blow when Gary MacKenzie was forced off with an injury, but began to grow back into the game as they looked to grab an equaliser. Smith was looking lively in his first start for the Buddies and forced a good save out of Rogers before the Falkirk defence cleared with Stevie Mallan lurking. Then Loy made the opposition 'keeper work with a looping shot that was well held. 

The visitors were keen to try and put some breathing space between the sides and could've done twice through Craig Sibbald. The 21 year-old looked certain to score as he burst into the box, only to be denied by O'Brien who did brilliantly to block. A minute later Sibbald cracked the Saints cross bar with a volley. O'Brien was made to work again when Hippolyte smashed a low drive down the face of goal.  

Half Time: St Mirren 0-1 Falkirk 

Stephen McGinn came on early in the second half in place of Mallan to a rapturous applause from the home support. And it looked to be a positive change when he sent Pål Fjelde in down the right hand side before the Norwegian's cutback found Smith in the box. The loanee saw his shot saved well by Rogers before the goalie captured the ball at the second attempt. 

Frustratingly for the Buddies though, Falkirk were two ahead just a few minutes later when John Baird got his second goal. Aird played the ball down the side to Lee Miller who crossed the ball into Baird. The striker did well to control the ball before putting it beyond O'Brien to double the visitors advantage. 

Saints looked to hit back quickly and some excellent defending from Peter Grant denied John Sutton what would surely have been an easy headed goal by leaping just above the Englishman to knock the ball out for a corner.

The game hit a bit of a lull, but with around 15 minutes to go Saints halved the deficit to give themselves a fighting chance of taking something from the match. Some neat footwork by Loy got the striker through on goal where he drilled the ball into the back of the net. 

The Buddies had one last big chance to salvage a point, but only after O'Brien made a tremendous stop to deny Luke Leahy. In the dying embers of the match Saints won a corner from which Jack Baird rose the highest to bullet towards goal but agonisingly it went beyond the post and meant St Mirren left the match empty handed.

Full Time: St Mirren 1-2 Falkirk  

St Mirren: O'Brien, Fjelde, Baird, MacKenzie (Webster, 22), Irvine, Storie (Todd, 82), Mallan (McGinn, 55), Morgan, Smith, Loy, Sutton
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Stelios, Clarkson, Magennis

Falkirk: Rogers, Leahy, Muirhead, Kerr, Baird (Gasparotto, 90), Sibbald, Hippolyte, Grant, Miller (McHugh, 89), Aird (Kidd, 90), Watson
Subs Not Used: Thomson, Gallacher, Shepherd, Craigen

Referee: Alan Muir
Assistant Referee: Michael Banks
Assistant Referee: David Dunne

Attendance: 3,316

Match gallery pictures by Allan Picken – © Allan Picken Photography and John Millar - © millarpictures

St Mirren are through to the fifth round of the Scottish Cup after a thoroughly deserved 2-0 win over Premiership side Dundee at Dens Park.

Goals from John Sutton - his 40th for the Buddies - and Jack Baird earned Saints the victory and sees them in the hat for the last 16.

Saints had won seven out of eight cup ties this season coming into the match with the only loss coming to Premiership opposition when Hamilton defeated the Buddies 3-0 at New Douglas Park. 

But there was to be no repeat of that this afternoon as St Mirren outplayed and outfought their top tier opponents.

The home side could have taken an early lead though through Marcus Haber. The Canadian striker, who recently signed a new deal at Dens, was played in and was one on one with Billy O'Brien after beating the offside trap. But from a tight angle he smashed the post. 

Saints were battling hard in the early stages and won two corners in quick succession. However, Dundee dealt with the danger on both occasions. 

The warning signs remained though as Dundee had two half chances through Faissal El Bakhtaoui and Craig Wighton. The first saw Mark O'Hara pick out El Bakhtaoui but the striker sliced the chance wide. Then Wighton went on a run which culminated in the forward smashing towards goal but he didn't connect well enough and it went wide.

Debut goalkeeper Billy O'Brien made a terrific save to deny Cameron Kerr after the midfielder's long range effort as the home side looked to crank up the pressure. O'Brien pushed the ball by the post and looked confident as he punched away the resultant corner.

The Buddies took the lead on 24 minutes through John Sutton. It was the Englishman's milestone 40th goal for the Saints and his 10th this season. It was a great finish as he picked the ball up on the edge of the box and curled beyond Scott Bain in the Dundee goal to send Saints fans delirious. 

There was no let up from the visitors and Stephen Mallan's flick inside the area found the head of ex-Dundee player Gary Irvine who headed just over the bar. Then Kyle McAllister, celebrating his 18th birthday, also went close to doubling Saints lead when his shot from outside the box went whizzing over.

Dundee were still very much in the game and made O'Brien work with the goalkeeper making several good stops to keep Saints ahead. He made a fantastic save to tip Wighton's effort over the bar. From which the home side should have been level when Haber rose above the St Mirren defence but somehow headed wide. And it was Haber who made O'Brien work again with the Welsh U21 international pushing the Canadian's shot away.

Half Time: Dundee 0-1 St Mirren

Like last week against Dunfermline, Saints got the second half off to a flier when Jack Baird doubled the visitor's advantage a little over three minutes in to the second period. St Mirren won a corner that was headed back out and found its way to Mallan after Wighton slipped in the box. Mallan's footwork was good as he moved away from the Dundee player to find Baird who wrapped his foot around the ball and beyond Bain.

The Buddies were clearly in the mood after coming out from the break and had a series of corners in a good ten minute spell. Sutton could've grabbed his second when was on the end of one of the corners but could only watch as Bain tipped over.

After a blistering start from the away side the second half became a fairly quiet affair. Dundee rarely threatened in the second half barring winning a few corner kicks which didn't cause The Buddies any harm.

Substitute David Clarkson almost added a third for Saints after coming on as a sub. The striker burst through on goal only to see his attempt denied by the feet of Bain. 

In the end, two was to be enough as Saints march on into the fifth round of the Scottish Cup.

Full Time: Dundee 0-2 St Mirren

St Mirren: O'Brien, Magennis (Whyte, 74), Baird, MacKenzie, Irvine, Fjelde, Storie, McAllister (MacPherson, 90), Mallan, Morgan, Sutton (Clarkson, 85)
Subs Not Used: Langfield, Webster, McLear, O'Keefe

Dundee: Bain, Holt, Hateley (Duffy, 58), O'Hara, Extabeguren, McGowan, Gadzhalov, Kerr, El Bakhtaoui (Williams, 58), Haber, Wighton
Subs Not Used: Mitchell, Vincent, Ross, Curran, Gomis

Referee: Bobby Madden
Assistant Referee: Graham Chambers
Assistant Referee: Jordan Stokoe

Attendance: 3622 (523 Saints supporters)

A selection of pictures from yesterday's 1-1 draw with Dunfermline at East End Park in the Ladbrokes Championship.

Match gallery pictures by Allan Picken – © Allan Picken Photography and John Millar - © millarpictures

St Mirren came away from East End Park, the home of in-form Dunfermline, with a point after Gary MacKenzie's second half header. Saints had fallen behind in the first half when Kallum Higginbotham scored from the penalty spot. But experienced MacKenzie earned the Buddies a share of the spoils with an early second half goal in a high tempo encounter.

Stephen Mallan had a free kick opportunity with less than a minute on the clock. Saints had won the ball from Dunfermline's kick-off and won the set piece in 'Mallan territory'. The midfielder stepped up and curled it just beyond the left hand post.

The visitors started in good fashion and Rocco Quinn was next to go close when his long range effort was deflected wide for a corner. However, Mallan's delivery had too much on it and evaded Gary MacKenzie who was running in from deep at the back post.

Saints won another corner but only after Langfield had to be alert to deny Michael Moffat. The ball was played through to the striker, taking out the Saints defence, with Langfield doing well to block the attempt. The corner for the Buddies

The home side started to take a foothold in the match and only some last ditch defending from Andy Webster denied Nicky Clark the opportunity to get a shot away at goal. It was again Webster to the rescue when he cleared the ball off the line. Paul McMullan found space in the box on the right hand side and hit a shot which deflected beyond Langfield with the captain there to scoop the ball away from danger.

Dunfermline felt they should've had a penalty around the half hour mark when Michael Moffat felt he had been fouled in the area by MacKenzie. The referee was unmoved and play raged on.

However, the Pars would win a penalty minutes later when MacKenzie was adjudged to have fouled Moffat this time. Kallum Higginbotham made no mistake from the spot as he smashed it into the net beyond Langfield to gives Pars a 1-0 lead.

The Buddies could've been level mere minutes later when both Kyle McAllister and MacKenzie went mightily close. 17 year-old McAllister burst through on goal on the left hand side and saw his effort pushed by the post by Sean Murdoch in the Dunfermline goal. From the resultant corner defender MacKenzie bulleted a header goalward only to see it crack off the post and be cleared away. Saints kept up the pressure with more corner kicks but nothing was falling for the visitors and Dunfermline took their 1-0 lead into half time.

Half Time: Dunfermline 1-0 St Mirren

Saints made the perfect start to the second half when MacKenzie headed home an equaliser. Mallan's shot was pushed up into the air by Murdoch and headed behind for a corner. The ball was whipped in where MacKenzie climbed above his marker to slam the header into the Pars net. It was the defender's second goal in three games and was the ideal way to get the second half going.

Dunfermline should've retaken the lead less than 10 minutes later when Clark found himself free on the right hand side. The forward expertly picked out Moffat who somehow managed to send the ball wide when it looked easier to score.

The home side were having the bulk of the pressure and were denied a second goal by a wonderful save from Langfield. Clark rose the highest to head the ball towards the left hand corner of the net but the experienced goalkeeper - playing his first match since November - clawed the ball away. 

The Buddies were very much still in the match though and MacKenzie's aerial presence at corners saw him almost score a second. Again the defender rose the highest but this time his header nestled in the arms of Murdoch. Moments later, substitute Lewis Morgan flashed a shot just over the bar from the edge of the box. 

Higginbotham went close to getting his second of the afternoon when he let rip from outside the box watching it fly just wide of the left hand post. And the forward did similar from a free kick minutes later after Storie had pulled back Moffat. 

The game petered out with half chances for either side, though Clark had a wonderful chance for the home side, but his header went just beyond the post and both sides took a point,

Full Time: Dunfermline 1-1 St Mirren

St Mirren: Langfield, Naismith, Irvine, Webster (Baird, 45), MacKenzie, Quinn (Morgan, 58), Storie, Mallan, Loy, McAllister (Magennis, 74), Sutton
Subs Not Used: Willison, Clarkson, Fjelde, McLear 

Dunfermline: Murdoch, Talbot, Ashcroft, Fordyce, Herron, Geggan, Wedderburn, Higginbotham, McMullan (Cardle, 89), Clark, Moffat
Subs Not Used: Hutton, Martin, Morris, McCabe, Reilly, El Alagui

Referee: William Collum
Assistant Referee: Stephen Mitchell
Assistant Referee: David Doig

Attendance: 4,108

Match report and gallery pictures by Allan Picken – © Allan Picken Photography and John Millar - © millarpictures