ST MIRREN survived a major penalty scare and had their goalkeeper to thank as they secured a point which manager Jack Ross believes could prove precious in their quest for survival.
Referee Steven Finnie remarkably did not point to the spot in 32 minutes when Paul McMullan looked to have been taken down by Gary Irvine.
Then eight minutes from the end Billy O’Brien made a remarkable save to deny Michael Paton a winning goal.
Conversely, Lewis Morgan and Rory Loy missed great opportunities but Ross, who went to the supporters’ bar after the game to thank the fans, was more of a glass half full kind of guy.
Saints are now four points behind Ayr United and Ross said: “We obviously need to win games but there are occasions when a point is a good result and this might be one of those.
“We are one point closer to the team immediately above us. It might be the point that proves vital for us at the end of the season.
“Dunfermline possess a real attacking threat and because we have to play games on the front foot we always knew they could cause us problems.
“They had opportunities to win the game so while it could have been better it could have been a lot worse.
“I couldn’t have asked for more the players and because of other results we have to take the positives.
“I went straight to the supporters’ bar after the game to thank the fans for their backing not just in recent times but over the course of the season.”
Morgan shot weakly at Sean Murdoch in 59 minutes while Loy replicated that failing when he missed a great chance in 63 minutes.
However, Allan Johnston felt his side at least deserved a point not least for the spot-kick decision that went against his side at a crucial stage.
He said: “It was a penalty when Paul McMullan was taken down from the back. It was a big call but we had other opportunities and we have to take them. The referee was really close to it. Paul was only a few yards from goal and it looked like a challenge from behind so it looked like a penalty.
“I felt we had the better chances. St Mirren had to go for it so it made for an exciting game. They put us under pressure and we had to defend set- pieces which I felt we did very well.
“After that I felt we were the better team and it was just our decision-making that let us down. However, we had a lot of good performances.”
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