Clinical Callum Hendry led St Johnstone into the last-eight of the William Hill Scottish Cup.
The striker played a pivotal role as the Ladbrokes Premiership side recovered from a shock opening at Somerset Park to move into the quarter-finals.
Mark Kerr’s second-tier outfit stunned the Saints after just four minutes when on-loan Irishman Aaron Dirnan struck his first goal the club to threaten a giant-killing act.
However, Hendry turned the game along with the rashness of Ayr defender Aaron Muirhead.
The hitman pressured the defender into an own goal for an equaliser before the United centre-back was red carded for crunching Liam Craig when already on a booking to leave his side with 10 men for over an hour.
Hendry struck almost instantly after Muirhead’s ordering-off to give Tommy Wright’s 2014 cup winners an advantage they never looked like squandering.
It was comfortable enough in the end, yet Saints had some worry before their win.
United had dumped top-flight Ross County out in the previous round and made a perfect start when Dirnan started and finished the move which gave them their breakthrough.
The Ipswich attacker kept moving after winning an initial head flick which then brought him a one-on-one chance after Alan Forrest and Grant Gillespie combined to find his run and play him through.
Dirnan took his shot early and rolled the ball beyond Zander Clark. It was a poor opening for Wright’s side, but the game swung around in quickfire first-half fashion as the hosts suffered 10 minutes of torture.
Saints levelled with 17 on the clock when David Wotherspoon’s cross from the left was diverted into the net. Hendry claimed the strike from close range, although the ball seemed to touch Muirhead last to spark a dreadful sequence of events for the centre-back.
Within moments, he was booked by referee Steven McLean. Three minutes later, he was off when a straight red card was administered for rattling Liam Craig in the middle of the park.
Muirhead wasn’t even in the shower by the time Saints took immediate advantage of their extra man by going in front. There was no doubting Hendry got that one as he finished convincingly from a Drey Wright centre as the visitors swept into a lead at the break which they maintained until the conclusion.
United keeper Ross Doohan’s wonderful save from Hendry’s swirling free-kick kept his team in the contest just after the restart, but the top-flight side stayed on the front foot against the 10 men as conditions deteriorated.
Wotherspoon hit a post and came close from distance during the second period, but, although Wright’s men were unable to add to their tally, they had already done enough to secure their progression.
3 TALKING POINTS
MUIRHEAD MISERY
The Ayr defender had the type of 10 minutes which any player must dread. The stopper seemed to get a last touch on the ball as Saints levelled before collecting both a yellow and red card in rapid succession. It was a nightmare for him and his colleagues. You wouldn’t have been surprised if he went into the car park for the drive home to find the tyres were flat.
HENDRY A HANDFUL
The St Johnstone striker was busy and central to the fightback. The hitman showed determination to try and get something on Wotherspoon’s cross for the equaliser and also finished with conviction for the second. The 22-year-old has become something of a lucky charm for the team. He’s now scored in six different games this season and Saints haven’t lost any of them.
CONDITIONS A NIGHTMARE
Considering the howling wind and the difficult nature of the conditions, both teams were due credit for coming up with some neat passages of football. The move for Ayr’s opener was delightful and Saints out together some nice movements of their own as they fought back to win. Fair play to the boys on the park for ensuring it did not become a lottery.
