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Gary Harkins' fine finish gave Dundee a deserved win over a disjointed St Johnstone that stretched the Dens Park side's unbeaten run to 10 games.

Dundee leapfrog Saints into fifth place in the Scottish Premiership after Harkins scored from close range on the turn after 28 minutes.

Keeper Alan Mannus also denied Harkins and Paul McGowan after the break.

Saints, looking for a third straight win, pressed for an equaliser but failed to test keeper Kyle Letheren.

It was a victory that ended St Johnstone's dominance over their Tayside rivals, who had not won in their last seven meetings and who had not enjoyed a victory in their previous nine visits to Perth.

The mood around McDiarmid Park was dampened prior to kick-off as Saints manager Tommy Wright revealed that defender Tam Scobbie and striker Steven MacLean might need knee operations.

With Lee Croft the third player to drop out of the starting line-up, it meant starts for Frazer Wright, Michael O'Halloran and Brian Graham.

It was the latter who had the first chance of the game, but the on-loan Dundee United striker headed wide from a David Wotherspoon cross.

Saints were dominating the early minutes as their high, pressing game forced mistakes from the visiting rearguard.

Dundee, though, persevered with passing play that mirrored the style manager Paul Hartley adopted as a player and it soon had the Perth side chasing shadows.

Simon Ferry, who had come into midfield in place of injured former Saints striker Peter MacDonald, should have done better than lash a shot over the crossbar from the edge of the penalty box following a miss-hit clearance.

Dundee's clever set-pieces were leaving the Saints defence flummoxed, but their threatened breakthrough came via a straight-forward Philip Roberts corner.

Ferry lofted a hopeful ball back into the penalty box, it was headed on by James McPake and Harkins steered it home from eight yards, although there were suggestions that defender Thomas Konrad had got the final touch.

As in the first half, Graham had the first opportunity from the restart but again headed wide at the back post.

Once more, Dundee refused to allow that early threat disturb their balance and the impressive Harkins had a low curling free-kick beaten away by goalkeeper Alan Mannus.

McGowan was next to test the Northern Ireland international, who parried clear at the near post after the midfielder controlled well with his chest before firing powerfully towards goal from a difficult angle.

St Johnstone were resorting to hopeful balls into the Dundee penalty box but rarely looked like preventing the visitors claiming their first victory in Perth since April 2002.