SOMETHING had to give here, with St Mirren boasting a 100% record at home, and Aberdeen arriving at Love Street with a similarly impressive away record – oK, in both cases it read "played one, won one" – but there was no surprise that this was a little tighter than the home side's 7-0 midweek thrashing of Dumbarton.
It was fairly evenly balanced, though St Mirren manager Gus MacPherson thought otherwise, arguing afterwards that his side had dominated the first half. They certainly had more of the possession but the difference between the teams was one clinical
strike by Darren Mackie late in the half. Asked later whether that had given their opponents a lift, MacPherson responded: "I didn't see the lift, I just saw the surprise. In the first half they never looked a danger," he continued. "To get caught in the manner we did was frustrating."
They were caught two minutes before half-time, when Mackie, lurking just inside the St Mirren half, managed to give Will Haining the slip, then scampered goal-wards while Lee Miller burst forward in support. On the edge of the box Mackie slipped the ball to Miller, then called for it back, got it, and slammed it first-time into the net. "I just hit it as hard as I could and it went in the bottom corner," as Mackie said later.
St Mirren had conjured up the first decent opportunity a full half-hour earlier, when Franco Miranda cut in from the left and unleashed a powerful shot. Jamie Langfield got down to block it, but he couldn't hold the ball and it fell to Billy Mehmet, who didn't have enough time to compose himself, and he could only bundle it back to Langfield.
Aberdeen then enjoyed a decent spell of possession, knocking the ball around nicely in St Mirren's half. Eventually Derek Young found space to push forward, but his effort was well wide. But the home team had the edge in terms of pushing forward, and threatening the Aberdeen goal, with Langfield called to the rescue on as many as three occasions.
St Mirren's best chance came after 32 minutes, when Mehmet, again, found himself in a great position, just six yards from goal, and with the ball at his feet. On this occasion he reacted quickly but swiped it over when it looked easier to hit the back of the net.
MacPherson's side emerged fighting in the second half, and Andy Dorman had a shot headed off the line by Lee Mair five minutes after the re-start. They were passing well, moving the ball around quickly, and pushing forward, but there didn't appear to be a way through.
For Jimmy Calderwood it was his Aberdeen side that dominated the second half. "We had so many chances to finish it off," he said, "but I think our football is getting better with every game." And with that 100% away record already suggesting an improvement on last year's tally of 14 defeats on the road, Calderwood was content.
Late on, the home crowd was animated by a booking for Miller for diving in the penalty box, and the appearance for the away side of Tommy Wright, but otherwise there was little for them to get excited about as they were left to contemplate a home record 50% less impressive than it had been at 3pm.
The full article contains 577 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
