“A very important three points.

“I think it was clear what type of game it was going to be.

“I have been coming here for 30 years as a player and a manager, and apart from a brief spell under Tommy Burns, I can never remember an atmosphere like there was today. Huge credit to the Kilmarnock team, and (from that) everything that is happening here at the moment. I thought the Kilmarnock support got right behind their team and made it a proper atmosphere.

“In anticipation of that I felt that we would need to keep calm.

“I thought we used our experience very well today.

“I spoke to my staff yesterday and I felt that it was going to be a 1-0 game. I just felt that chances would be at a premium. This pitch does allow you to play especially on a dry day like today, it is so difficult for any sort of patterns of play (to develop), any flowing football.

“There were a lot of challenges and a lot of competitiveness shown from both sets of players.

“But what was clear for me was we scored the all important goal from a brilliant Scott McKenna header. He should be scoring more, but it was great to see him scoring today to get us the points.

“I felt our experience and discipline showed today.

“Although we had quite a young team in certain areas, I still felt our experience of this type of game helped and we managed to get the job done. it was always going to be a tough game.

“Nothing is settled today.

“But it is three very important points.

“We still have a lot to do, we have to play against some good teams but it was an important three points and I am delighted with the reaction of my players. If anyone thought our season finished last week at Hampden, I think today and the appetite of my players today illustrates the exact opposite.

“We have work to do to get a European spot. Other teams are desperate to get that because they have had a lack of European involvement in recent years. It is equally as important to us at Aberdeen.

“Hopefully we can get the job done.

“I think Sam Cosgrove gets a raw deal. I did no think he did too much wrong today.

“I am not convinced it was a yellow card, but I had to get him off. The type of game, he was potentially going in half-hearted towards the end of that half. I thought about taking him off before half time because I would have been kicking myself if he got involved in another incident. I just felt that it was important that we got him off and it was important that we kept 11 men on the pitch.

“We can all sense it, he was maybe one challenge away from getting sent off.

“We lose a bit of size which does not help against Kilmarnock at set-plays. And then I took Devlin off because I felt we needed a more natural left back in Max Lowe when playing against ten men. And then we get young Ethan Ross on. Although we lacked a bit of size McKenna has come up with the goods from a set piece. From then on in, I thought we were relatively comfortable – there was loads more going on – but in terms of the actual game, I thought we managed the game very well.

“I have seen the red cards again. I watched them back (before coming into the press conference).

“My view of the first one is that he (Broadfoot) is offside. We kept a really good line and the linesman has not flagged. McKenna has allowed him to get a header in because we have held our line. He has taken a heavy touch and, sometimes what happens with a heavy touch, he has thrown himself to try and get on the next one. I don’t think he is trying to do Joe Lewis. But the boys are telling me, they thought both feet were off the ground and there was a bit of a lunge into Joe. Having watched it back with my video analyst, I can’t say for sure from the camera angle if it was red card or not.

“The second one (Findlay), I can’t remember the first yellow but the second one was right in front of me and I thought it was a yellow for the foul on Shinnie.

“And then the last one, my video boy is on the other side of the pitch, so there are a lot of bodies in the way, and from what I saw at the time from the dugout, I have not really seen the incident. I know Rory McKenzie and he is a brilliant lad – if he has kicked out, I am very surprised.”