Aberdeen 2 - 2 St Mirren: Buddies earn point as Dons miss chance to close gap on Rangers

St Mirren's Duckens Nazon scores an early penalty to put the visitors ahead. Pic: SNS/Bill Murray

For long spells it was like an attack-versus-defence training exercise with the Dons dominating possession, but Cosgrove conceded a crazy penalty Duckens Nazon converted to give the visitors a first half lead.

Lewis Ferguson celebrated a new contract extension that will keep the teenage midfielder at Pittodrie until the summer of 2024 by heading the leveller before the interval only for more poor defending to allow Kyle McAllister to fire St Mirren back in front in 61 minutes.

Cosgrove’s composed finish 13 minutes from time completed the scoring despite Aberdeen laying siege to the Paisley club’s goal, although news from elsewhere took the edge off the result for both teams.

St Mirren’s first point in seven matches only succeeded in leaving them further adrift at the foot of the Premiership while the Dons failed to reduce the five point gap between them and second placed Rangers.

Their manager, Derek McInnes, was disappointed with his side’s defensive deficiencies but his main concern was the injury sustained by Tommie Hoban which seems certain to mean another lengthy lay-off for Watford’s on loan defender.

Hoban missed the whole of last season with a cruciate knee ligament injury and had only just returned to action following surgery to repair a shoulder damaged at Easter Road in his third game for Aberdeen last August.

Now just six matches into this latest comeback the luckless player’s studs stuck in the turf as he tried to turn, leaving him writhing in agony with what looks like another serious knee injury.

“The result today was disappointing but equal to that was losing Tommie” said a disconsolate McInnes. “We just have to hope it’s not as serious and if there is any justice for him that will be the case given the injuries he’s had.”

Hoban may have been by far the most serious casualty but he wasn’t the only one as St Mirren finished the match with just ten men as goalscorer McAllister went off suffering from cramp near the end after Oran Kearney had used all three substitutes.

The experienced Anton Ferdinand had already departed with a muscle injury after blocking Graeme Shinnie’s second half shot, but with Vaclav Hladky impressing in goal, and those still standing heroically throwing their bodies into challenges, they ground out a point.

That might not have been possible if Kearney hadn’t replaced Nazon at the interval as the striker followed a silly booking with a few other incidents that tested referee Craig Thomson’s patience.

“Duckens is excitable and that was the reason we took him off” admitted the St Mirren manager.“I think he got carried away after the goal so it was in everyone’s best interests for him to come off.”

Kearney was equally sensible in his response to this result and the one at Livingston when he said: “If you’d offered us a point coming up here we would have taken it but other results don’t really come into it because we have 36 points to play for and it’s in our own hands.”

“There is no big panic from that point of view, we have enough games and if we don’t do it then we deserve what we get.”

Aberdeen also have enough games to clinch a fifth successive second place finish but they need to rediscover how to beat stubborn opponents at home to achieve that.