Marley Watkins notched a controversial winner as Kilmarnock claimed a precious 1-0 victory over Dundee United.
A drab encounter that brought little in the way of opportunities sparked into life in the 72nd minute.
United goalkeeper Jack Walton misjudged the flight of the ball, allowing Watkins to nod the ball home.
The visitors furiously appealed for a foul, but the goal would be allowed to stand following a VAR check.
The Rugby Park side have lifted themselves to ninth in the William Hill Premiership table – seven points ahead of St Johnstone, who occupy bottom spot.
United handed a debut to Allan Campbell, who signed from Charlton earlier in the week.
The former Motherwell midfielder almost made an immediate impact when he prodded just wide of the target after the Killie defence struggled to deal with Will Ferry’s long throw.
Neither keeper had been tested in the early exchanges. However, that would change in the 12th minute when Joe Wright brought out a tremendous save from Walton following a pin-point delivery from Watkins.
A superb driving run by Danny Armstrong ended with a shot which sailed well over before Derek McInnes was forced into a first-half substitution.
Brad Lyons came off the worst following an aerial challenge with Campbell, leading to the Killie skipper being replaced by Liam Polworth.
Chances were at a premium with neither side able to find any sort of fluency in the final stages of the first half.
Fraser Murray should have done better when he turned Armstrong’s cross over the bar, while at the other end an acrobatic effort Ruari Paton landed just wide of the target.
There was a huge let-off for the hosts in the opening minutes of the second half when Luca Stephenson won possession in a dangerous area, but was let down by a slack pass at a crucial moment.
The woodwork came to Killie’s rescue just before the hour mark. Ferry’s throw-in found Sam Dalby, who was unlucky to see his header strike the crossbar with Kieran O’Hara beaten.
Killie opened the scoring with 18 minutes remaining in what was a moment to forget for Walton.
David Watson’s cross skipped up off Declan Gallagher and Watkins rose above the United keeper to head the ball home.
The United players were adamant Walton had been fouled and surrounded referee David Dickinson, though the goal was allowed to stand.
Jim Goodwin threw caution to the wind in search of a leveller, introducing Kristijan Trapanovski and Glenn Middleton from the bench.
The move nearly paid off after Middleton found himself bearing down on goal, but he attempted to square the ball for Dalby when a shot on goal looked to be the better option.
There was a nervous finish for the home supporters as their side survived a VAR check for a possible handball in the final seconds before the full-time sparked celebrations inside Rugby Park.
