St Mirren 2-1 Aberdeen: Incredible stoppage-time double denies Neil Warnock his first Premiership win
- Published
Toyosi Olusanya's 97th-minute winner completed a remarkable turnaround in Paisley
A sensational stoppage-time double denied Neil Warnock his first Scottish Premiership victory as St Mirren fought back to extend Aberdeen's winless league run to 10 games.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino, in Scotland for an Ifab meeting, watched the bedlam from the stand in Paisley as Mark O'Hara's 96th-minute penalty was followed almost instantly by Toyosi Olusanya's incredible winner.
Warnock looked set to earn a maiden league win with his new club thanks to a 25-yard wonder goal from Connor Barron, scored after just 59 seconds.
But a remarkable late collapse heightens relegation fears for the Dons, who drop to 10th and remain just four points above second-bottom Ross County.
St Mirren players, staff and their fans celebrated wildly, with the victory meaning they leapfrog Kilmarnock into fourth.
"That was a super way to finish the game," manager Stephen Robinson told BBC Scotland. "It's the best way to win but not good for my heart.
"If I'm a St Mirren fan, I'm loving these boys. The energy and quality they're putting into this, the never say die attitude."
In contrast to recent games, Aberdeen were much improved but were still vulnerable from direct balls in the first half as St Mirren hit the woodwork twice.
Scott Tanser's header was tipped on to the near post by visiting goalkeeper Kelle Roos before Lewis Jamieson's superb first-time volley clipped the crossbar.
The away side attempted to add to their lead with strikes from Luis 'Duk' Lopes and Junior Hoilett, both prompting smart Zach Hemming saves from tight angles.
Failure to score a second after the break looked immaterial as they seemed sound at the back. That was until the 96th minute.
Initially given as a free-kick before the VAR intervened, substitute Olusanya nipped in front of Nicky Devlin to win a penalty which was smashed in low to the left by O'Hara.
And no more than 88 seconds later, St Mirren were celebrating a scarcely believable second when Mikael Mandron's back-post header found Olusanya to poke into the roof of the net.
Player of the match - Toyosi Olusyana
Won the penalty, scored the winner - a complete game-changer for St Mirren
Warnock's nightmare start drags on - analysis
Even amid a miserable start to his reign, there was still plenty of joking from Warnock pre-match. He will know now Aberdeen's situation is no laughing matter.
A shift to a back four, with centre-back Richard Jensen occupying the left side of it, looked an inspired decision. But this late collapse will only further erode the fragile backbone of Warnock's team.
Another issue: Bojan Miovski, what's happened there? Five games, no goals and another subdued performance.
A cup tie against Kilmarnock next weekend will be a welcome break from Premiership action, but back-to-back away trips to Dundee and Motherwell look daunting.
When you take into consideration the disparity in budgets between these sides, it only highlights further the fantastic job Robinson is doing in Paisley.
A successive top-six finish, which is surely all but sealed, would already be a fine achievement. Bettering that with a European place would be superb.
What they said
St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson: "I thought we thoroughly deserved it. It would've been a real injustice if we didn't get the result.
"Aberdeen looked like a team under pressure, they played direct which is understandable. We dominated, to not get anything would've been cruel."
Aberdeen manager Neil Warnock: "I don't think I've felt as disappointed as that in many years. It's not what we deserved, but that's life.
"We never get anything easy at the minute, we haven't had much luck since I've arrived. I couldn't see them scoring in a million years and we've ended up losing."
What's next?
Aberdeen are in Scottish Cup action next Saturday (12:15 GMT) as they host Kilmarnock live on the BBC. St Mirren have the weekend off before travelling to Rugby Park on 16 March (15:00).