Saints won this one with two goals about 5 minutes apart. Up front Martin Cameron seemed to be winning everything, but unfortunately Junior Mendes couldn't always get onto them. When he did he seemed to be doing some half decent stuff with the ball after his shocking performance last week.
After some mixed play, with Saints and Abroath having some half decent chances, Saints took the lead after a string of corners. When Arbroath finally got one clear, the ball found its way to Ian Ross, who played the ball straight back in. Robb was there to hit the ball home, his third goal in 4 games. Goal machine!
Saints kept up the pressure, but unlike the Clyde game they managed to make it count. A high ball was played forward, Mendes won it (in the air), and directed it to Cameron. He chested down and played it back to Mendes, who hammered it in for 2-0.
Sadly, neither of our goalscorers were to make it to the second half. Robb appeared to have been struggling since kick off, and made things even harder for himself by picking up a silly booking. After giving away a silly free kick, he decided to kick the ball away Zaire style. Unfortunately, FIFA haven't issued a directive saying this is now legal, so he was booked in one of the few correct refereeing decisions of the day. He was lucky not to be sent off just before half time, and John Coughlin made the sensible decision to replace him with Paul Rudden at half time.
Mendes didn't even make it that far. After pushing the ball past an Arbroath defender, he appeared to run straight into the guy. It looked like a silly thing to do, but the ref thought it was a foul and gave a free kick. Mendes didn't get up, and had to be stretchered off. He could be out for a wee while. Jamie Dunbar replaced him up front and was pretty good.
Ludo Roy also appeared to be struggling in goals. From about midway through the second half, he wasn't keen on punting the ball, and got a defender to take all the by kicks. His lack of movement due to injury almost cost us at times, and I wonder how close we were to bringing on KRis Robertson. Fortunately, he held out and kept our first clean sheet in the league this season.
The second half wasn't brilliant, with Arbroath having some good chances at the start and the end, which they didn't take. Saints had some too, a great shot from Ricky Gillies, or maybe Graham Guy, was palmed away for with a great save. A Cameron goal was ruled offside when it may well not have been, and he also came close with a header. Late on, Brian McGinty put a shot the wrong side of the post which brushed the back of the net. The entire Northbank jumped up to celebrate, thinking it had gone on, and the entire PDE stand slagged them for it. You don't often see that between two sets of supporters of the same club!
Now, the referee. he was abysmal. In the second half, Dunbar was being held back by a defender, and wasn't given a free kick. He kept going for the ball, made a tackle just as the keeper picked it up, and the goalie dived as if he'd been clobbered. Arbroath got a free kick for it! It seemed every time we tried to win the ball from an Arbroath by kick, we were penalised. Around our box we gave away a free kick for lifting our feet about an inch off the ground. Late on, Ross was flattened down the right and only a booking was given! Arbroath didn't escape either, when a St. Mirren player put an Arbroath player on the ground, we got a free kick.
All in all, a good performance by the Saints players. More of the same next week against Queen of the South please.