Saints squander two penalties, but still ease past Buddies
It took St Johnstone 92 minutes to break Motherwell’s hearts last week, but this was an altogether more comfortable afternoon for the Perth club as they deservedly recorded their first home win since late-August.
Second-half goals from David Wotherspoon and Matty Kennedy enabled them to overtake Aberdeen and move into seventh place, and the margin of victory could and should have been even wider.
Visiting keeper Craig Samson pulled off a sensational Gordon Banks-style penalty save at 0-0, but St Johnstone were so overwhelmingly superior that they could even afford to miss two second-half penalties.
“When you miss two penalties, that can give the opposition a bit of a lift, but I’m pleased that we didn’t allow that to happen and we kept our foot on the gas,” said home manager Tommy Wright.
“We changed our system for the match today, but I thought we dominated the game from the start.
“We lost our way and it got a little bit scrappy midway through the first half, so we said to the players at half-time that we needed to move the ball a lot quicker, and we did that.
“That’s probably the save of the season that we’ve seen today from Craig Samson.
“Tony Watt also missed a good chance at 0-0, but I’m still very happy with Tony – he works hard for the team and he’s a really good lad.
“That’s another clean sheet for us after conceding six goals last time we were at home to Celtic, so I’m very happy about that, too.”
Wotherspoon had already seen a shot deflected wide by the time Samson made his wonder save from Tony Watt in the 19th minute.
The former Celtic striker appeared to have done everything right, but his downward header from pointblank range was somehow scooped on to the bar by the Buddies keeper, bringing back memories of Banks denying Pele at the 1970 World Cup.
Home goalie Zander Clark then intercepted Lee Hodson’s cross before Wotherspoon again went close with a curling free kick.
St Mirren’s Danny Mullen was awarded a yellow card for diving rather than the penalty he hoped for, although the decision had an inspirational effect as Mullen shot wide and then tested Clark with a header.
Samson’s second notable save thwarted Kennedy in first-half stoppage-time, but he looked certain to be beaten early in the second period, only for Watt to blaze wide from five yards.
Wotherspoon’s low, left-foot finish spared Watt’s blushes and put the home side in front on the hour mark, and they ought to have doubled their lead barely three minutes later after Paul McGinn shoved Murray Davidson in the back.
Watt’s wretched afternoon continued, though, when that man Samson pushed away his spot-kick.
St Johnstone earned another penalty ten minutes later following a Hodson foul on Drey Wright. This time Liam Craig was the Saints sinner, blasting his left-foot shot way over the top.
Craig and Watt heaved a huge sigh of relief when Kennedy made the points safe with a second Saints goal six minutes from time.