Kearney denies St Mirren have advantage after stalemate with Dundee United

Posted Friday, May 24, 2019 by PA

Boss Oran Kearney denied St Mirren have the advantage over Dundee United after the goalless Ladbrokes Premiership play-off final first leg at Tannadice.

After a mostly dull encounter watched by a healthy and enthusiastic crowd of 11,062 fans, most in tangerine, the two teams will prepare to meet again in the second leg in Paisley on Sunday afternoon.

The Buddies, who finished 11th in the top flight, are now unbeaten in seven games but Kearney railed at the idea that the tie has swung towards his side.

He said: “No, not for me. The most important thing at this point in time is the scoreline.

“It is 0-0 at half-time, that’s the way we will be approaching it. We put in a good performance and kept a clean sheet.

“From an attacking threat we had two or three really good opportunities and but for a couple of outstanding saves we might have nicked it 1-0 but in general we have got to be happy with the attitude and application and more than anything the way we handled the pressure.

“We stood strong at the right moments. It is now to 90 minutes on Sunday at our place and we have to go and do it.

“We are very confident that we can do it, particularly because the performances and results in the last six to eight weeks have shown us the capabilities of this side.

“The key thing is we keep that level of performance for one last time on Sunday.”

Dundee United manager Robbie Neilson was not surprised by how tense the game was but remains confident of completing the job on Sunday.

Neilson said: “It is always the same with these games, the first leg is always an edgy one and no one wants to take a risk.

He added: “We go there with a real good chance. I was really proud and was really pleased with the players, in the first half we took the ball and tried to move it and got through the lines a few times.

“We wanted to win the game. I would like to be sitting with a lead but if you’d offered me a 0-0 to take down there beforehand I would have taken that.

“We are looking forward to it, it is a great opportunity for us and it will be a great spectacle.”