St Johnstone striker Keigan Parker ensured that St Mirren's miserable start to the season continued with the only goal of the game at Love Street.

Parker scored an early goal and the Perth side were quite happy to kill the game and mop up St Mirren's largely ineffectual attempts to get on terms.

St Mirren have found scoring difficult and did so again in this match.

St Johnstone were sharper at the start and Graeme Jones should have done better than shoot over the bar in four minutes.

St Mirren made the first genuine chance in eight minutes but Alan Main, at full stretch, kept away Mark Yardley's 18-yard shot.

The crucial goal came in 10 minutes. Mohammed Sylla played the ball forward to Jones who in turn fed striking partner Parker.

The teenager wrong-footed veteran Tommy Turner before sliding the ball past Ludovic Roy from 16 yards.

St Mirren spent the remainder of the first half playing catch-up but their final crosses and efforts on goal failed to trouble Main and, to a lesser extent, his defenders.

The visitors should have wracked up the points more comfortably in the opening five minutes of the second half.

After 47 minutes, Parker was denied a second goal by a finger-tip save from Roy while four minutes later Sylla was allowed to run 50 yards before shooting across goal.

Two minutes later a lucky interception by Iain Nicholson took a Paul Hartley cross away from the waiting Craig Russell.

St Mirren did have chances but it was symbolic of their day that they totally failed to convert them.

After 55 minutes Quitongo was sent clear into the St Johnstone penalty area only to trip over his own feet.

Then the home fans' cries for a penalty following a collision between Mark Yardley and Jim Weir were stifled as Weir was given the free-kick.

Quitongo had another good chance after 70 minutes but shot straight at Main who had come quickly off his line to shut him down.

The little Angolan then saw his diving header touched away by Main but Quitongo had been ruled offside.

St Mirren grew increasingly frantic as time ran out but the best chance of a late goal fell to the visitors with substitute Tommy Lovenkrands rattling a post with a low shot in injury time at the end.