Kilmarnock moved into fourth place in the cinch Premiership by staving off a St Johnstone comeback to win 2-1 at at rain-swept Rugby Park.
The home side’s storming start saw 18-year-old midfielder David Watson thunder in a long-distance drive in the sixth minute before veteran striker Marley Watkins doubled the lead in the 17th minute and more goals should have separated the sides at half-time.
Just after the hour mark, with no let up in the foul weather, Saints substitute Nicky Clark reduced the deficit from close range and a game that looked in Killie’s control had to be managed until the end against the rejuvenated Perth side.
Derek McInnes’s side, now unbeaten in four games, are one point ahead of St Mirren whom they play in Paisley on Wednesday, but it could have been a more comfortable afternoon for them.
St Johnstone boss Craig Levein had predicted a “scrap” but his side could have been counted out of the game before half-time.
Amid swirling wind and rain in Ayrshire the unchanged home side blew their opponents away in the early stages.
In the fifth minute Killie midfielder Brad Lyons did well to get to a terrific cross from left-back Corrie Ndaba but he headed over the bar from 12 yards.
However, the home side soon took the lead when Watson, who had scored the winner at Aberdeen earlier in the month, took a Danny Armstrong pass 25 yards out and rifled his shot past diving Saints goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov and in off the post.
Levein had brought back Ryan McGowan, Tony Gallacher, Graham Carey and Chris Kane while fit-again Clark started on the bench, but they were strangely subdued.
Watkins’ goal came when he picked up the ball on the right, played in the ever-dangerous Armstrong and when the 33-year-old took the return pass inside the box, he poked it low past Mitov from 12 yards.
Killie captain Kyle Vassell then turned a tantalising cross from Lyons over the bar from six yards when a goal looked certain.
Saints threatened for the first time in the 25th minute when Max Kucheriavyi made a yard of space for himself inside the Killie box and thrashed a shot at keeper Will Dennis, who beat it away with defender Lewis Mayo completing the clearance.
As conditions deteriorated towards the interval, Vassell sent a driver over the bar from a Watkins pass as St Johnstone’s defence again looked hesitant.
There was some surprise that Levein did not make changes for the second half but after 56 minutes, with the Ayrshire side still in control, he brought on Clark for midfielder Dan Phillips and five minutes later he made an impact.
From a Matt Smith free-kick wide on the left, Clark nipped in front of the Killie defence to knock the ball past Dennis, with a VAR checking confirming he was onside.
Killie responded and after being booked by referee John Beaton for fouling Vassell outside the box – the home fans claimed he had denied a goalscoring opportunity – Mitov tipped a Liam Polworth free-kick over the bar.
At the other end, as nerves seeped into the Killie defence, Clark tested Dennis with a low drive from inside the box before Gallacher somehow flashed a shot over the bar from a Fran Franczak cross when a leveller looked inevitable.
Dennis made a fabulous diving save from a powerful Smith volley in the 81st minute as St Johnstone kept up the pressure but the visitors steadied and in the end did enough to secure another three crucial points.
Vancouver Whitecaps v St. Louis City: Sartini calls for courage in Canada
A defiant Vanni Sartini believes Vancouver Whitecaps are on the right track, but called for more confidence and courage when St. Louis City visit in MLS.
The Whitecaps endured a disappointing two-game road stretch, culminating in their 2-0 defeat to Portland Timbers last time out.
That loss saw Vancouver drop to ninth in the Western Conference standings, only clinging onto the final playoff spot by way of a superior goal difference over Seattle Sounders.
Sartini acknowledged the frustrations of the last two showings, though suggests the Whitecaps can get back on course at BC Place.
"The concerns are always there, even if you win," Sartini said at pre-match media availability.
"It sounds very easy to say, but we just need to be a little better. That means a lot of things, however. Our performance hasn't gone down dramatically.
"The efficiency of our performances has gone down dramatically, though. We need to be better at finishing our chances, and being mentally stronger.
"The last couple of games before the break, we had two strong mental performances [in Kansas and Colorado]. Even though we weren't playing amazingly, we weren't making mistakes.
"The last two games away, we created more chances than in the games before, but we have been too easy to beat, we get a little flat when we hit the first trouble of those matches.
"We need to be more confident, courageous and more like: 'let's focus on the task'. If we are doing this, then the margin to make a lot of points is shorter."
Bradley Carnell's visitors are winless in their last eight domestic outings following a 1-1 draw with Atlanta United in their most recent fixture.
St. Louis are just three places behind the Whitecaps, though, with this the chance to strike a blow to their hosts' playoff hopes.
Carnell must arrest a poor spell in front of goal, however, as St. Louis have scored the second-fewest goals in the West this season (24).
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Vancouver Whitecaps – Ryan Gauld
Ryan Gauld has followed up his 11-goal 2023 with nine goals already this season.
With one more goal, Gauld will become the third Whitecaps player with multiple 10-goal seasons (Camilo Sanvezzo, Brian White) and the first to do so in consecutive campaigns.
St. Louis City – Indiana Vassilev
Indiana Vassilev scored his fifth regular-season goal for St. Louis on Saturday, becoming the sixth different player to hit the mark for the club in league play.
Only three teams have more players with five or more regular-season goals than St. Louis since they joined the league in 2023 (Real Salt Lake, Minnesota United, FC Cincinnati – seven each).
MATCH PREDICTION – VANCOUVER WHITECAPS WIN
The Whitecaps are the likely favourites for a narrow victory in this one, owing to St. Louis' woeful away form.
Carnell's side have managed only three wins in 26 games on the road in all competitions (drawn eight, lost 15) since winning their first three away matches in club history between February and March 2023.
Yet, it will be by no means straightforward for Vancouver.
They have lost consecutive matches following the defeat to Portland on Saturday, but Vancouver have not suffered three straight defeats within a single regular season since August-September 2022.
There is little to split these two teams in terms of the head-to-head record, with each side recording a home win against the other in two meetings between Vancouver and St. Louis City last season.
The hosts scored three goals in each game, while Brian White scored in both outings for the Whitecaps.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Vancouver Whitecaps win – 51.1%
Draw – 24.8%
St. Louis City win – 24%
'I knew it could be good' - Sabitzer proud after earning Austria top spot
Marcel Sabitzer is proud of not only his winning goal, but also the strength Austria showed in their 3-2 victory over the Netherlands on Tuesday.
Ralf Rangnick's side were drawn into a group including pre-tournament favourites France, the Netherlands and Poland, and few expected them to come out on top.
However, after narrowly losing their opening to Les Bleus, Austria beat Poland 3-1 before Sabitzer struck the winner – his first goal at the European Championships – against the Netherlands to see them finish first in Group D.
With a last-16 tie against one of the best third-place teams still to come, Sabitzer is confident in Austria's togetherness.
"I got the ball deep, I looked up to see if someone was free in the middle, but I got the impression that [the Netherlands] had more men there. In the past, the left foot has often helped me, so I thought that was the moment I could give it a try," Sabitzer told reporters.
"As soon as the ball left my foot, I knew it could be good.
"We are all footballers who want to win games, and that is our objective in every game. And if you have moments where things are a bit more difficult, and it goes back and forth, then the question is how does the team react to that.
"You can be proud of the unity we have, the mentality we have on the pitch ... we used our strengths, the goal was very nicely worked. So many Austrians who watch us in the stadium trust us, and we want to give them something back."
Chile 0-1 Argentina: Super sub Martinez sends Albiceleste to Copa America quarter-finals
Lautaro Martinez struck a late winner as Argentina beat Chile 1-0 to secure their place in the Copa America knockout stages with a game to spare.
The reigning champions looked like they would have to settle for a point on a frustrating night at the MetLife Stadium, having failed to turn their superiority into the game's opening goal.
But substitute Martinez, who also netted from the bench in his nation's opener against Canada, finally broke Chile's resolve when he lashed home two minutes from time.
It moved Lionel Scaloni's side onto six points at the Group A summit, three points ahead of Canada, who beat Peru 1-0 earlier in the day. A draw against Peru in their final game will now be enough to secure top spot.
Argentina dominated the first half with 13 unanswered shots, yet just three of those were on target. One of them saw Julian Alvarez fire straight at Claudio Bravo from close range in the 22nd minute.
Lionel Messi also went close to scoring in the 36th minute. La Albiceleste's skipper let fly with a fizzing 25-yard attempt that clipped the outside of Bravo's left post, while Erick Pulgar almost turned Nahuel Molina's cross beyond the Chile goalkeeper two minutes later.
La Roja had Bravo to thank for keeping Argentina at bay, as the reigning champions continued to carry the greater attacking threat after the break.
The veteran stopper beat away Molina's fierce strike within five minutes of the restart, and just after the hour mark, he produced a superb reflex save to tip Nicolas Gonzalez's drive onto the crossbar.
With the breakthrough still eluding the world champions, Scaloni bolstered his attack by introducing Angel Di Maria and Martinez for the final 17 minutes.
Chile had increased their own attacking threat by registering their first attempts on goal in the contest, with Rodrigo Echeverria calling Emiliano Martinez into action on both occasions.
Yet, there was to be a late twist in Argentina's favour when an 88th-minute corner broke kindly for Martinez, who reacted quickest to fire into the roof of the net and send La Albiceleste through to the quarter-finals.
Persistence pays dividends for Argentina
The history books would have suggested Argentina should have fancied their chances against Chile.
This is epitomised by the fact they are now unbeaten after 90 minutes in the last 13 meetings, winning eight of those, but that does not tell the full story.
Seven of those eight victories have only been by a single-goal margin and, of course, they lost on penalties in the Copa America final showdowns of 2015 and 2016.
Though they dominated most of this contest and registered 22 shots to their opponents' three, just the one goal was enough once more, with both of Martinez's strikes from the bench in this competition coming in the 88th minute.
Argentina progress to the Copa America knockout stages for a 14th consecutive time, excluding when they withdrew from the 2001 tournament.
Toothless Roja see resistance broken
Chile looked set to frustrate Argentina once again at the Copa America and hold out for a second successive clean sheet.
Their defensive resolve - along with an inspired performance by Bravo between the sticks - looked like it would remain firm and keep the reigning champions at bay, until Martinez's late intervention.
What will be more concerning for La Roja is the fact they have now gone four successive Copa America matches without scoring, while having to wait until the 72nd minute for their first attempt on goal.
That is something they need to address quickly ahead of their crucial final Group A clash with Canada, in which a victory could still see them snatch second place and a quarter-final spot.
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