Match report

Full TimeScore From Love Street (Kick Off 3pm) Att: 4680

St Mirren 0-1 Aberdeen (Mackie 41)

Aberdeen recorded their third one nil away victory on the bounce, as they moved on to the seven point mark in the SPL. This is the Dons best start since Jimmy Calderwood’s first season, when they had eight points at the same stage. It was again another fine defensive performance as Andrew Considine and Lee Mair were superb at the back. Darren Mackie also put in a shift up front and got the decisive goal to give the Dons all three points.

With the Dons looking to keep up their 100% away record, new boy Jared Hodgkiss had to settle for a place on the bench today as Jimmy Calderwood stuck with the same back four which played so well against Ayr United midweek. Striker Lee Miller returned as did goalkeeper Jamie Langfield, with Chris Maguire and Bertand Bossu dropping to the bench. Jamie Smith once again captained the side as Scott Severin and Zander Diamond missed out due to injury.

The opening exchanges saw both teams lining up 4-4-2 and effectively cancelling each other out. The first Dons chance fell to Darren Mackie who got his left foot shot, from inside the St Mirren box, all wrong after a chest down from Lee Miller.

Some good play from Derek Young saw the Dons midfielder skip by two St Mirren defenders as he shimmied right before cutting inside but again he failed to trouble Howard in the St Mirren goal.

From then on it was all the home side. First Miranda should have done better when he put a left footed free kick high over the Dons bar, when he really should have been testing Jamie Langfield. Then on the half our mark Billy Mehmet should have put the home side in front as pounced on some sloppy defending but again he failed to find the net.

Craig Dargo did test Jamie Langfield on 37 minutes, and the Dons keeper did well to hold the former Inverness strikers snap shot.

The Dons went ahead just before half time as Darren Mackie pounced on some poor St Mirren defending. Potter had looked to have cut out Lee Miller’s pass but his header back to the keeper was woefully short and Mackie pounced to comfortably side foot the ball into the bottom left hand corner of Mark Howard’s goal.

Half-time

St Mirren 0-1 Aberdeen

The Dons started the second half sharply and almost grabbed a second straight away as St Mirren’s defence looked sluggish, with Haining hobbling about like a chicken.

St Mirren looked to have levelled a minute later but Lee Mair did brilliantly to head Craig Dargo’s chip off the line. Richard Foster then headed away a Dorman cross that alluded Jamie Langfield.

Darren Mackie almost got his second on the half hour mark; he rose brilliantly above Jack Ross but couldn’t get enough purchase on the header to trouble Mark Howard.

The game was then thrown in to controversy – Lee Miller did well to beat Potter  and was clean through on goal, when he looked to be taken down in the box by Cuthbert but the referee booked Miller for diving. The Aberdeen fans behind the goal certainly did not agree with the referee!

St Mirren again squandered chances as the game drew to a close, with Dorman the main culprit as passed up two chances to deny the home side an equaliser.

Jeffrey de Visscher had Aberdeen’s final chance as a good quick move between Wright and Kerr resulted with the Dutchman firing in a shot from an acute angle.

The Dons hung on and came away from Love Street, for probably the last time, with all three points.

St Mirren: Howard, Haining (Cuthbert 52), Miranda, Potter, Robb (Wyness 65), Dorman, Ross, Mason, Brady, Mehmet, Dargo (O’Donnel 70)
Subs: McAusland,  Barron, Smith,

Aberdeen: Langfield, Foster, Mair, Considine, Mulgrew, Young (de Visscher 70), McDonald, Kerr, J Smith, Mackie,(Maguire 83),  Miller (Wright 79)
Subs: Bossu, Hodgkiss, Duff,   S Smith