Tangerines continue to set pace at top of the league

team were still struggling somewhat to get back in the game.

Vital as his contribution was, and will no doubt continue to be, this is not a one-man team.

He needs service and, having been starved of it in the opening period, his opportunity came from his team-mates upping the pace of their play and getting the ball into dangerous areas more quickly.

And, once United got going, there were good performances from a string of players, most notably Calum Butcher in midfield, Jamie Robson out wide and, as his fine start to the season continued, young Louis Appere.

The winner also showed this is a squad that includes plenty who are capable of making a telling contribution.

It came from Peter Pawlett, minutes into his first game of the season as he made a surprise return from the bench.

If this scrambled goal was certainly not a thing of beauty, it was worth its weight in gold because it earned a victory that sent out another very strong message to the rest of the second tier.

Against Inverness Caley Thistle, United had shown that, if they produced their best football they are a side that few, if any, in their division can live with.

If it would be wrong to say this was a case of winning ugly simply because the two sides served up an entertaining 90 minutes.

It was, though, a game where not everything went to plan and where Robbie Neilson’s team had obvious problems at times.

But they won and it’s teams who have that knack that, come the end of a season, often end up at the top of their league.