St Mirren 0 Dunfermline 1

The Big One - the big match and the big goal from Tam McMANUS who scored after 58 minutes.

It was a beautiful sunny night in Paisley and the tension mounted as the teams warmed up. It was to be the largest attendance of the season at St Mirren Park and both sets of supporters streamed in hoping to witness the sun going down on their opponents SPL life. This was to be the big relegation decider; a win would put Dunfermline just one point behind Saints but a defeat would increase the margin to seven points.

With everything at stake Stephen Kenny brought back Scott Wilson, Tam McManus and Stephen Glass after their cup exclusion meaning Darren Young and Jamie McCunnie found themselves on the bench and Phil McGuire served out his second of his two match suspension. St Mirren were unchanged from the side that won at Falkirk the previous Monday.

Prior to kick off it was the Pars fans who were winning in the volume stakes and certainly the travelling support looked to be full of great expectations. A barrage of around 50 beach balls rained down from the visitors stand before McIntyre and McManus got the game underway with the Pars attacking the goal in front of their own support.

Right away the Dunfermline players demonstrated that they were up for this game every bit as much as their fans. An Adam Hammill ball into the box in the second minute was aimed at Jim McIntyre but Hugh Murray`s challenge flattened him and play continued. Very soon a long throw by Muirhead found the head of McIntyre on the byeline but Chris Smith gathered the ball albeit not convincingly.

A fourth minute free kick 25 yards out on the left awarded after Murray chopped down McManus, was taken by Jim O`Brien but he was well above the crossbar with his attempt. St Mirren gradually managed to tame the visitors` initial enthusiasm, a John Sutton headed effort coming close from a Richard Brittain free kick from wide right.

A 16th minute corner from Brittain on the right was headed on target but de Vries held and another two minutes later was cleared by Greg Shields. Hammill was causing St Mirren problems and van Zanten in particular. His marker picked up a yellow card for a rather crude tackle and then challenged Hammill in the box at the other end where the Liverpool player might have gone to ground in a penalty claim.

St Mirren tried to get the ball forward but the most that was troubling de Vries was Sol Bamba`s numerous pass backs. The big man powered forward himself in 31st minute to trouble Chris Smith at the other end. Having intercepted a pass in the Saints half he played a 1-2 with McIntyre on the edge of the box. He controlled with his left and got the shot in with his right but he was wide right with the Pars best chance of the first half.

Hammill curled a ball over from the left that Smith grabbed from under his crossbar and in 37 minutes when he dispossessed van Zanten, he hit a shot well wide of target. Five minutes from the break it was the same Adam Hammill who shot from the edge of the box right side but the ball squeezed outside Smith`s left hand post.

Territorially the visitors were getting on top and the Paisley folk grew quieter only roused by a corner won after Stewart Kean`s cross was spectacularly headed behind by Bamba.

Hammill broke past van Zanten and Potter before Maxwell covered across to concede a corner. Surprisingly this was the Pars first corner, taken while the announcer informed us of one minute of added time, but Smith came out well to hold O`Brien`s delivery. So 0-0 at the break and Dunfermline were badly needing to get a goal in the second.

Half Time: St Mirren 0 Dunfermline 0

Urgency appeared to have struck the Pars as they took off from the restart. Shields was up to force a corner on the right after two minutes and when Glass sent that over McManus`s flick was well saved by Smith and he regained his composure to deal with a driven shot from Hammill at the edge of the box.

The keeper knew less when Hammill`s 52nd minute free kick was laid back by McIntyre to Scott Wilson at the edge of the box and a loud roar rose from the away stand as McManus diverted the defender`s shot past Smith. The linesman`s flag was quickly raised as the `scorer` was unfortunately ruled offside. In 55 minutes Hammill picked a route through the central defence but his eventual shot was blocked by the green shirted keeper.

Three minutes later Dunfermline struck with that much sought after goal. Stephen Glass started the move from the edge of his own box. He picked out McIntyre on half way who laid the ball into the path of Scott Muirhead. The former Dons player motored deep into the Saints half, choosing to give Hammill a touch on the wing, he was well placed to accept the return and drive a low shot on goal from the edge of the box. The shot was blocked by Kirk Broadfoot but Tam McMANUS was on hand to stick the ball past the keeper to send players and fans delirious. Tam`s second goal in as many games.

Cue much singing from the large travelling support matched by anxious calls from frustrated Buddies. Come on ye Pars echoed upfield as Hammill directed in another free kick from the left side but St Mirren cleared the overhit ball.

Nerves were not apparent as Shields and then Muirhead had some good headed clearances and Gary Mason powered his way out of a predicament. The cup finalists looked calm as they kept St Mirren out at two 77th minute corners. Vital seconds were eaten away as Billy Mehmet came on for the opposition and then when Jamie McCunnie replaced Hammill.

A second Dunfermline goal would have made the last ten minutes much more comfortable and that just about happened when O`Brien shuffled his way into space for a cross to the back post but McManus just failed to connect. Things got frayed in the last five minutes with St Mirren on more than one occasion, almost scrambling in an equaliser. Corners and free kicks came as Saints remembered that their simplest road to SPL safety was to net against their opponents.

After four minutes of added time the final whistle brought on the second great Pars celebration in six days. This time, however, we are not into Europe, not even assured SPL next season but one point behind St Mirren with three games each remaining. Just what effect will this victory have, the Pars first win in Paisley since 2000? One would expect a demoralising effect on St Mirren and a real boost to that momentum for the Pars. Never has Paisley looked so beautiful!