Kilmarnock 2-1 St Mirren

St Mirren scored their first league goal of the season but it was not enough to end their run of Scottish Premiership defeats at Kilmarnock.

Substitute Robbie Muirhead cut in from the left to fire Killie ahead in the second half.

Adam Drury converted John McGinn's cross to level the match and give the Buddies hope of their first point.

However, Mark Connolly scored from a Sammy Clingan free-kick to secure victory for the hosts.

It will only be a small consolation for St Mirren that they finally broke their scoring duck at Rugby Park.

They have still to register a point this season and there is a growing sense of frustration and anxiety.

The visitors were looking to unburden themselves at Rugby Park. The performances have been able enough, but the lack of a clinical edge was increasingly debilitating.

St Mirren needed a goal to release the building pressure. That might have resulted in their bright opening at Rugby Park, since an attacking four of John McGinn, Kenny McLean, Adam Drury and James Marwood looked attentive and eager to trouble the Kilmarnock defence.

A familiar flaw troubled them, though, since the sparky movement and intent lacked an end product. McLean slung a deep cross towards the back post for McGinn, but his volley was comfortably stopped down low by Kilmarnock goalkeeper Craig Samson.

The home side never looked alarmed in defence, but their own attacking endeavours tended to run into futility. Tope Obadeyi was a menacing presence on the ball, since he ran forward with pace, skill and unpredictability, but he was seldom able to create an opportunity for himself or a team-mate.

On the one occasion that he did break beyond the St Mirren defence and tried to centre the ball for Michael Ngoo, St Mirren goalkeeer Marian Kello was able to cut out the delivery and prevent the Kilmarnock striker from having a simple chance to convert.

Prior to that, Josh Magennis had steered a header wide from Sammy Clingan's cross, but neither side was playing particularly effectively.

Controversy was still able to impose itself, and Jim Goodwin was booked for a heavy challenge on Clingan that prompted heavy booing from the home crowd. When Clingan returned to the field moments later, he soon caught Goodwin with a hefty tackle of his own, although the Kilmarnock midfielder wasn't booked.

St Mirren remained forlorn in front of goal after the interval. Even when Manuel Pascali gave the ball away to Jason Naismith and the St Mirren full-back played in McGinn, his cross to McLean finished with the midfielder rashly side-footing his shot over the bar.

Misfortune was lining up against the visitors, too. From McGinn's corner, McAusland rose above his marker to head the ball into the net, but the referee Alan Muir had already awarded a foul to Kilmarnock.

St Mirren might have felt that a prolonged spell of possession was a cause for optimism, but it merely underlined their ineffectiveness in front of goal. On a rare foray upfield Kilmarnock broke the deadlock, with substitute Robbie Muirhead pulling free on the left, cutting inside Jason Naismith and then steering a shot across Kello and inside the far post.

There was cruelty in the goal since St Mirren had dominated possession after the break. They were not overwhelmed by regret, though, and within 11 minutes they had equalised.

The goal brought a surge of relief - since it rescued their status in the game but was also their first in five league games - and it came from Mark Connolly being robbed of the ball inside his own penalty area by Goodwin.

He moved the ball on to McGinn, whose cross was then converted by Adam Drury as he rushed in at the back post. The goal ought to have lifted the visitors, since it showed resilience and enterprise, but instead they lost their way.

Kilmarnock reasserted themselves and Connolly redeemed himself when he met Clingan's free-kick with a powerful header that sent the ball beyond Kello's reach. St Mirren kept trying to chase the game, but while they at least broke their scoring duck, they still remain pointless in the Premiership.