Match Report
Conditions at McDiarmid Park were hardly conducive to good football. Heavy rain combined with strong winds were always going to make the playing of good football difficult as Thistle aimed to bounce back from a series of disappointing results and end the month of October on a high.
Injury though was set to hamper Thistle’s chances of doing just that. Marc Twaddle a midweek doubt for the fixture was unfortunately not fit enough to take up his usual position in the Thistle side. Willie Kinniburgh was drafted into the defence in Twaddle’s absence with Simon Storey once again demonstrating his versatility by occupying the left wing back position.
Elsewhere Stephen McKeown and Liam Buchanan started this fixture with Scott Chaplain and Simon Donnelly dropping to the bench where they were joined by Damon Gray, Chris Turner and substitute goalkeeper Craig Hinchcliffe.
By kick-off the rain had relented a little and Thistle were first to have the wind at their backs. The strength of that wind obvious when a Paul Paton free kick inside the first minute drifted beyond the Thistle forwards in the wind.
It was to St Johnstone that the game’s first chance fell to. A cross from the St Johnstone left held up in the wind allowing Derek Holmes to nod the ball wide of Jonny Tuffey’s right hand post.
Liam Buchanan’s never say die attitude created an opening for himself in the 7th minute. Chasing a long ball forward he was able to get to the ball ahead of St Johnstone keeper Alan Main and defender Liam Craig but found the angle just too tight and his shot drifted across the six yard box.
St Johnstone though were able to take a 14th minute lead with a goal that had more than a hint of good fortune to it. Shooting directly into the wind a poorly struck Martin Hardie free kick was heading nowhere in particular only for it to be deflected into the path of Stuart McCaffrey who shot low into the net.
Minutes later it could have been 2-0. Gavin Swankie sent over an excellent cross from the right hand side and no fewer than three St Johnstone players were just a matter of inches away from providing the touch that would surely have resulted in a St Johnstone goal.
Thistle were close to being back on level terms in the 21st minute. A Paul Paton corner was met by the head of Liam Buchanan and Buchanan was only denied his first goal since returning from injury by a fantastic goal line clearance from Paul Sheerin just everyone was expecting to see the ball hit the back of the net.
Simon Storey was close to connecting a Stephen McKeown cross in the 26th minute after McKeown had been set up by a neat Paul Paton flick as Thistle sought an equaliser.
The next goal though nearly came at the other end on the half hour mark, a Gavin Swankie shot being deflected wide by a Thistle defender for a St Johnstone corner.
A minute later there were loud St Johnstone appeals for a penalty when the ball appeared to strike the hand of Willie Kinniburgh. After the ball was cleared referee Brown stopped the game for a few seconds to draw attention to the fact that increasingly strong wind had blown a couple of advertising hoardings close to the playing surface.
In the 38th minute a Thistle free kick some 35 yards from goal was worked into the path of Ian Maxwell who was able to test Alan Main in the home goal but his shot was just a little too straight to cause the home keeper too much anxiety.
The strength of the wide had providing the major talking point in the first half and with Thistle having had the dubious benefit of the elements in the first 45 minutes there was a real fear that Thistle had almost quite literally blown their chances as they went in at half-time trailing by that Stuart McCaffrey goal in the 14th minute.
Neither side made any changes at the interval and nor did the wind appear to have abated any.
Two minutes into the second half and St Johnstone had a penalty. A fier cely hit Liam Craig free kick struck the arm of Willie Kinniburgh and Paul Sheerin was given the opportunity of perhaps taking the game out of Thistle’s reach. Sheerin rarely misses from the spot but on this occasion Jonny Tuffey was able to fling himself to his left hand side to keep the ball out.
Steven Milne sent a shot wide following a John Robertson error in the 54th minute and profited from another Robertson error 2 minutes later but was again unable to take advantage.
Thistle were becoming more and more hemmed in and in the 58th minute Ian Maxwell had to clear a Milne cross at the expense of a St Johnstone corner.
In the 61st minute St Johnstone won their second penalty of the afternoon. Sheerin swung the ball over and with Ian Maxwell’s arms round Derek Holmes referee Brown pointed to the spot. Liam Craig was the man entrusted with the penalty this time and he made no mistake with a confident and powerful finish.
Jonny Tuffey was unable to hold a Steven Milne shot in the 65th minute but as the ball broke loose with two St Johnstone attackers in close attention the flag went up for offside.
As he had hinted he would during the week Ian McCall replaced Liam Buchanan in the 68th minute with Damon Gray coming on in his place.
When Derek Holmes laid the ball into the path of Steven Milne to score a third St Johnstone goal in the 69th minute it was a damage limitation job for Thistle for the remaining twenty minutes and Scott Chaplain replaced Gary Harkins almost as soon as the game restarted.
Thistle’s misery was increased in the 71st minute when Simon Storey was sent off after his lunge on Gary Irvine after Storey has lost possession of the ball.
A Steven Milne shot that caught in the wind with five minutes remaining came close to inflicting further misery on a Thistle side that clearly couldn’t wait to hear the full-time whistle.
The 90 minutes had come and gone when Kevin Rutkiewicz hooked a shot wide with a nightmare afternoon and month of October for Thistle brought to a non too swift conclusion.
