Kneesy does it for Milne

St Johnstone 1 Clyde 0

PRIZED Perth poacher Stevie Milne admitted his crucial winner was nice and kneesy.

The super Saint's ugly first-half winner stretched the league leaders' unbeaten run to 14 games and extended their lead to eight points in the championship chase.

But the Bully Wee battled every step of the way until sub Gary McSwegan saw red in the final moments for lashing out at Liam Craig.

Milne pounced in the first-half to snatch his eighth of the season, before revealing boss Derek McInnes had been ready to wield the axe.

He laughed: "It came at me awkwardly but I managed to wrong-foot them and control it into the corner of the net with my knee. I practice those in training!

"The gaffer spoke to me this week, saying maybe I was needing a wee break. So it was good that he stuck with me. Maybe that was good management because I put in a decent performance and got a goal.

"It's opened up a wee gap going into the New Year so it was a good three points.

"Dunfermline have games in hand but I'd rather have the points in the bag. They could pick up six points but I'd much rather be in our position."

Perth boss McInnes piled praise on his players, noting: "This is the club's best run for nearly 20 years and they should be proud of themselves. There's a lot to be pleased about.

"I really enjoyed the game but I'd have enjoyed it more if we'd got the goals our play deserved.

"Some of our play was magnificent. And Paul Hanlon had as good a debut as you will see after signing on loan from Hibs."

Confident Clyde were the last team to claim all three points in Perth and boss John Brown, a former Ibrox teammate of McInnes, was demanding more of the form which had seen the Bully Wee edge clear of the dropzone in recent weeks.

Saints exploded from the blocks but Derek Holmes blew a gilt-edged chance in the fourth minute. The McDiarmid target man linked up with Milne to shred the Clyde defence but his eight-yard shot was aimed straight down the throat of relieved keeper David Hutton.

One-time Saints winger Willie McLaren stretched the Perth defence in the 13th minute with a sparkling 70-yard run which left Kevin Rutkiewicz for dead.

But his angled right-foot strike was superbly blocked by old hand Alan Main in the home goal.

A classy overlap from new kid on the block Hanlon almost played in Milne, but a desperate late touch prevented the striker rolling home a close range finish. But Saints' top gun was on the mark to break the deadlock in the 28th minute.

The spadework was done by battling partner Holmes, who rose above the Bully Wee defence to power a header down into Milne's path.

The striker got lucky when the ball struck his knee and squeezed agonisingly beyond stunned keeper Hutton to find the corner of the net. Brave Clyde were not overawed by the unfortunate break. They fought their corner and twice came close to a stunning leveller in the closing stages.

Home skipper Rutkiewicz had to look lively when he headed a looping header from Alan Lithgow off the line before veteran Main clawed out a netbound McSwegan header to preserve another clean sheet before the former Rangers striker walked late on.

But Bully Wee boss Brown admitted: "We didn't do enough to get anything from the game. Saints have got striking options and that could prove decisive in this league."

ST JOHNSTONE: Main, Irvine, Hanlon, Morris, Rutkiewicz, Anderson (Millar 61), Swankie (Moon 87), Craig, Holmes, Milne (Jackson 87), Sheerin.

CLYDE: Hutton, Lowing, Brown (Maclennan 39), Higgins, Gibson, Lithgow, Trouten, Emslie, Clark, Waddell (McKay 56), McLaren (McSwegan 68).

Partick Thistle 0 Ross County 2

SEAN HIGGINS - who was the victim of a double blow from his manager last Saturday - inflicted a double blow of his own on the Jags yesterday at Firhill.

Higgins, who looks to be on his way out of the Dingwall club after taking two punches in a dressing room bust-up with gaffer Derek Adams at Morton, showed the qualities that he has as a striker with a goal in each half to give County a hat-trick of victories over the Jags this season.

Adams said: "I congratulated Sean when he came into the dressing room. And as far as I'm concerned he is a County player and there's nothing more to be said about it.

"It was an all-round team effort and I thought the boys were fabulous today.

"I don't know what it is about games against Partick. That's three wins this season and to be fair we've thoroughly deserved all of them. Sometimes you just have that type of influence over a club."

Higgins' first strike - one of sublime quality - came in 24 minutes.

Jags' highly-rated midfielder Gary Harkins failed to clear properly and the striker was first to react with a shot from the edge of the area with the outside of his right boot which caught goalkeeper Jonny Tuffey off his line.

The Jags offered very little in attack although in 32 minutes Marc Twaddle's deep cross from the left found Liam Buchanan but his eight-yard shot on the angle went wide.

Two minutes from the break the Jags threatened again when Simon Donnelly sent a clever cross over for Buchanan but his header skimmed the crossbar.

Thistle hadn't suffered a league defeat at Firhill since last August in the six games since County last came visiting.

And their hopes of averting another defeat were hardly improved in 72 minutes when they were reduced to 10 men.

Twaddle, shown a yellow card in the first half, lunged at former Firhill team-mate Adam Strachan in a needless tackle and saw red for his effort.

Ian McCall rang the changes using all three substitutes in a bid to change his side's fortunes.

But it was the introduction in 80 minutes of David Winters from the County bench in place of Steven Craig which proved to be the decisive moment.

Four minutes after coming on Winters' clever chip found Higgins racing in from the right to lift the ball over Tuffey and ensure the points were heading north.

McCall said afterwards: "We were brutal. That was our worst performance of the season and we got out of the game everything that we deserved.

"I don't know what went wrong, that was just totally out of character and in particular when a good crowd turned out to watch us at home.

"That type of performance is just unacceptable to all of us."

PARTICK THISTLE: Tuffey, Peyton, Twaddle, Storey (McKeown 59), Robertson, Archibald, McKinlay, Rowson (Chaplain 70), Buchanan, Donnelly (Roberts 64), Harkins.

ROSS COUNTY: Soutar, McCulloch, Golabek, Watt, Boyd, Strachan, Hart, Britton (Dowie 57; Gardyne 87), Higgins, Craig (Winters 80).

Queen of the South 0 Dundee 1

DUNDEE gaffer Jocky Scott was delighted as his side moved clear of the relegation dogfight.

But the veteran boss insists the Dark Blues have to learn how to kill teams off if they are to keeep climbing the table.

Colin McMenamin's 30th minute winner piled on the misery for Queens who are in freefall after a nightmare run.

Scott said: "We missed several chances and it's a fault I have not yet rectified.

"We are creating six or seven good chances in each match and simply not putting them away.

"We should have been out of sight in the first half and we could have paid the penalty after the break for wasting so many chances.

"But we got the points, and I think we are beginning to put it all together."

Dundee were well on top in the first half, with Freddie Daquin the biggest threat to the Dumfries defence.

Twice in the opening stages he left his marker stranded, and sent over crosses which saw the home defence in all sorts of trouble.

And only two fine saves by Queens keeper Bryn Halliwell denied both Daquin and Andy Shinnie with close range shots.

The Dumfries goal seemed to live a charmed life before Dundee broke the deadlock on the half hour.

Daquin swept the ball across the face of the goal and Chris Posniak smashed in a shot which saw keeper Halliwell parry, but the ball fell for McMenamin and he made no mistake.

Queens crumbled after this and were lucky to survive to the break without losing another goal.

But they showed more fight in the second half after a roasting from gaffer Gordon Chisholm.

They were unlucky when Sean O'Connor had a shot blocked, and then Stephen Dobbie cracked in a drive which was deflected and cleared off the line by Jim Lauchlan.

But Dundee should have had it tied up on the hour mark when a break from midfield left Shinnie with just the keeper to beat, but he fired wide.

Queens gaffer Chisholm said: "I was really angry at that first half performance - I think it was the worst I have seen them play.

"It was another bad reesult and I hope I can bring in at least a couple of new players to increase the competition for a place in the side."

QOS: Halliwell, Parratt, McQuilken, Reid, Thomson, MacFarlane, McGowan (Kean 46), Simmons, Kinniburgh (Robertson 46), O'Connor (Weatherston 70), Dobbie.

DUNDEE: Douglas, Malone, Cowan, McKeown, Lauchlan, Paton, Shinnie, Posniak, Daquin (McHale 76), O'Brien, McMenamin (Gilhaney 89).

Airdrie 1 Morton 0

GUTTED Ton boss Davie Irons refused to slam blunder kid Chris Smith over the blunder that handed Airdrie a crucial win.

Smith was woefully short with a passback to keeper Kevin Cuthbert and as Diamonds ace Simon Lynch pounced he was upended by Cuthbert who was shown a straight red card.

Lynch picked himself up and beat sub keeper Colin Stewart from the spot for the winner. Irons, who immediately subbed Smith, said: "The penalty and sending off changed the whole game.

"Chris is a young lad and I've told him decision making is something that will determine whether he can play at this level. He should have put the ball out of play rather than trying a pass back but he will learn from this.

"I didn't sub him as a punishment but his confidence might have taken a dent and we neeeded to reshuffle anyway."

Airdrie carved out several chances to break the deadlock, but Lynch squandered the best of them after being sent through by Joe Cardle's clever reverse pass. But the match swung decisively in the Diamonds' favour following Smith's howler.

Airdrie boss Kenny Black said: "It was a game we needed to win so we're delighted."

AIRDRIE: Robertson, McLachlan, Nixon, McDonald, Donnelly, Smyth, McDougall (Maguire 90), McKenna, Lynch (Di Giacomo 72), McLaughlin, Cardle (Smith 84).

MORTON: Cuthbert, McGregor, Smith (Stewart 45), Shimmin, Greacen, Jenkins, Finlayson, Masterton, Weatherson, Grady (Wake 65), McAlister.

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