Aberdeen 0 - 2 St. Johnstone

Following a minute's silence in memory of Eddie Turnbull, Saints kicked off and an early opportunity saw a tame shot go well wide of Jamie Langfield's right hand post. The visitor's then won the opening corner in the 4th minute and a second quickly followed as Aberdeen were pinned back in the early stages. A very soft free kick was awarded against Vujadinovic two minutes later, but the chance was squandered as the home crowd waited for the Dons to waken up.

It came as no surprise when Saints grabbed the lead in the 8th minute when a ball was played into the box and Stevie Smith turned it past his own keeper. There were loud shouts for a penalty in the 12th minute when Diamond barged into the back of McDonald. The referee was well off the pace and didn't award the kick. The Dons were a bit lucky to get off with that one, but Aberdeen finally produced a decent move in the 18th minute.

Jack and Aluko combined well, but the final ball to Maguire was cut out. In the 21st minute Maguire won a free kick 25 yards out and although the wall took the pace of the shot, Vujadinovic did well to steer it back into the danger area. Unfortunately Blackman was forced wide and the chance was gone. At the other end Saints went close to doubling their advantage when the Aberdeen defence failed to clear their lines and Magennis had to scramble the ball clear. A minute later a looping header landed on the roof of Langfield's net.

Young was booked in the 28th minute as the captain questioned a decision from the match official. St. Johnstone continued to dominate the play and Langfield was forced into a fine save from Millar in the 31st minute. Two minutes later Davidson fired a decent effort inches wide. The same player was then spoken to after a poor challenge on Diamond. The central defender required lengthy treatment before returning. Aluko brightened up the play in the 36th minute when he supplied a header for Jack then cut inside before curling an effort wide.

A Maguire effort went well over, but Aberdeen were starting to show a bit of fight now. However Saints forced a corner with five minutes remaining, but not before Robertson replaced the injured Diamond. Magennis then picked up a bad knock as he helped defend the corner. He was able to return in time to challenge for the Dons first corner of the match. Unfortunately the ball fell nowhere near him or any other player in a red shirt. In injury time Langfield made another fine save to keep the score to one.

Aberdeen won the opening corner of the second half in the 48th minute, but it was well defended by Saints. At the other end an offside flag brought a Saints attack to a halt as the send half still had to take shape. Saints then won a free kick in the 50th minute and three minutes later the referee booked Milsom for the challenge. A minute later Jackson was put through one-on-one with Jamie Langfield and the keeper made a magnificent block to keep the Dons in the match. Seconds later Vujadinovic made another telling block as Saints looked to finish the game off.

St. Johnstone won another corner in the 57th minute and Langfield was forced to punch clear. A second corner followed on the hour mark and this time St. Johnstone doubled their advantage. Craig swung the ball over and Jamie Adams rose unchallenged to bullet the header beyond Langfield. Aberdeen attempted to hit back, but as usual any challenge on the keeper is penalised. In fact in this game any physical contact was leading to a free kick.

In the 67th minute Fraser Fyvie made his comeback when he replaced Blackman. The shape of the game didn't change and St. Johnstone were still dominating the play. Another corner in the 78th minute caused panic in the Aberdeen defence before Low replaced Magennis. Low was then involved in the move that produced an Aberdeen corner, but again the chance was wasted. Five minutes later a deflected cross from Low hit the bar before being cleared.

A minute later Fyvie was taken late yet following a series of soft free kicks nothing was awarded. Late on another Saints shot skidded wide as the crowd started to drift away. This had been an instantly forgettable 90 minutes and the fans will be looking for a better display in the final home match on Tuesday night. Craig Brown will also be sweating over the fitness of Zander Diamond with resources already stretched to the limit.