Last updated on .From the section Scottish Premiership

Wasteful Motherwell were consigned to a sixth Premiership loss of the season by Jason Kerr's late header.

The St Johnstone defender rose to nod a corner beyond Trevor Carson in the second minute of stoppage time.

It was a sickening blow for Well, who are still searching for their first home win of the campaign and remain 10th in the table.

Chris Cadden and Curtis Main squandered big chances either side of half-time for Stephen Robinson's men.

The visitors, six points better off in eighth, finished strongly and claimed victory with almost the final act of the contest.

Woeful Well bereft of guile

This was a bruising grind of little quality. The football was painfully limited, agricultural and uninventive for large periods. The accuracy of distribution was abysmal. Retaining the ball for longer than a couple of bobbling passes, awkward prods and hopeful hoists forward was often beyond either team.

Motherwell had the better of the first half, Main arcing a drifter towards the top corner that Zander Clark had to tip away. The St Johnstone goalkeeper also denied Peter Hartley while Andy Rose struck the bar.

But the Steelmen were woefully short of guile. When on the stroke of half-time Cadden conjured some class and sniped into the box, he blazed over. Soon after the interval, Main was sent galloping towards goal by a wonderful pass from David Turnbull, the 19-year-old, but lashed into the stand.

They were Motherwell's two best opportunities as they muddled around the edge of the box, bereft of ideas and precision.

The game entered its final throes and St Johnstone grew. Drey Wright rasped a 25-yard drive that Carson had to stop at full stretch. They loaded up the box and sent in set-pieces deliveries that brought edginess in home ranks.

With time almost up, they struck. Kerr escaped his marker at the back post and nodded Liam Craig's arcing delivery into the net. A stunning climax for Tommy Wright's. A hammer-blow for Motherwell.

Turnbull a rare spark for Steelmen - analysis

BBC Sport Scotland's Kenny Crawford at Fir Park.

The presence of the returning Murray Davidson and Craig in the Perth side's midfield was a real influence in this match.

Davidson loves a battle and was in his element in a game of multiple innocent bumps and bruises.

Craig, meanwhile, provided a calm short pass in moments of tension for Saints and it was a delivery of quality from him that allowed Kerr to net the decisive strike.

There wasn't too much to write home about for Motherwell but the performance of Turnbull was certainly one of the few bright parts of the drizzly afternoon for the Steelmen.

The teenage midfielder was only making his third league appearance of the season yet was the player who most looked like he would create something from nothing.

'We played with fear' - reaction

Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson: "We concede from a set-play so we've only ourselves to blame. We dominated large parts of the game, Curtis Main has to score, and the game's different.

"But you can see as the game went on, the boys were playing with fear. The subs I brought on looked frightened. Even more experienced players are slicing balls. We have to find it from somewhere within us to believe in ourselves, take composure."

St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright: "It's difficult when you come here, they play a certain way, they're physical, but I've no problems with that. We dealt with that all day.

"Once we tried to pass it a bit more we looked the better team and kept going to the end. The performance for us was all about character, determination and keeping going right to the end and we got our rewards for that."