St. Mirren make it two wins from two

St. Mirren 1 - 0 St Johnstone

St Mirren made it two wins from two in the new Scottish Premiership season. Killian Phillips’ second-half penalty settled a tight contest against St Johnstone.

Author | Max Lee

Stadium | The Marbill Coaches Stadium

Samuel Ramos was denied by Toby Steward and the crossbar for the hosts before St Johnstone’s Jamie Gullan missed a penalty shortly after the interval.

With the match drifting towards a goalless draw, Ramos was brought down in the area and Phillips kept his composure from the spot to preserve St Mirren’s perfect start.

Strong winds made conditions difficult on a fiery pitch, but both sides showed an appetite to play. Chances were at a premium, with St Mirren shading a competitive opening half.

The first clear opportunity took 25 minutes to arrive

A neat move was worked out wide before Ramos rose to power a header towards goal, only for Steward to tip it on to the crossbar. The ball then somehow escaped the players scrambling to reach the rebound.

St Johnstone’s first attempt on target came from the penalty spot. Following a review, referee Ross Hardie ruled that Alex Gogic had handled inside the area. Gullan sent his effort towards the bottom-right corner, but Jacob Chapman read it well and pushed the ball away.

Matthew Foulds then fired narrowly wide for the visitors before Jake Young saw his effort deflected past the post at the other end.

St Johnstone responded to going behind and came close when Cheick Diabate was desperately unlucky to see his header strike the post. Louis Lloyd then passed up an excellent opportunity after hesitating at the crucial moment.