St Johnstone made the chances, Fotheringham made the win

St Johnstone beat Dundee 2-1 at McDiarmid Park, creating far more than usual, while Dundee managed fewer shots than they normally take.

Dundee managed eight shots at McDiarmid Park, against an average of 11.8 when they play away, and still they were level within two minutes of the restart. St Johnstone had gone ahead in the fifth minute, when J. Campbell scored from a pass by E. Alıç. J. Westley equalised at 47, so the home side's lead lasted barely more than a few minutes of the second half's opening.

St Johnstone had 17 shots, well above the 9.6 they average at home and above the 13.9 a side usually takes in this league. Their expected goals figure, a rough measure of how good the chances were, came to 1.62, against a home average of 1.17. They also had 57% of the ball, where they normally have 45.5%, and 14 of those 17 shots came from inside the box.

Dundee's picture was different. Their expected goals figure was 0.53, far below the 1.34 they average away from home, and they held 43% of the ball, which is almost exactly their usual share. They created little, yet a single goal was enough to put them level, and that finish is the reason the match stayed open until the end.

The winner came from K. Fotheringham at 72, and his rating of 8.2 matched J. Campbell's as the best in the game. He also had three shots, three dribbles and won seven of the individual battles he was involved in, which is the kind of work that shows up when a side is pushing for a result rather than sitting back.

There were no red cards, though the discipline column tells its own story: Dundee picked up three yellow cards to St Johnstone's one. The match produced three goals in total, which is close to the 2.8 the league usually sees, so the scoreline was ordinary for the division. What stood out was the balance between the two sides, with St Johnstone scoring twice when they usually manage 1.3 at home.

In the table, Dundee sit fifth on 17 points from 11 matches, while St Johnstone are seventh on 14 points from 12. Both clubs had goals they expected to score and goals they did not, and the gap between those two figures is what separated them on the day.

Dundee have won five of their eleven away matches and lost four.

Player of the matchJ. Campbell1 goal8.2

K. Fotheringham1 goal8.2

J. Westley1 goal7.9

E. Alıç1 assist7.5