ST Johnstone made club history by racking up a sixth successive away victory at Dundee United but it was the wider battle for overdue respect that occupied match-winner Murray Davidson’s thoughts after a fiery Tannadice enounter.

The midfielder netted what he himself admitted was the scrappiest of winners in the dying embers of the first half, just three minutes after team-mate Chris Kane’s thumping header had cancelled out Billy Mckay’s nodded opener for the hosts.

The win marked a sixth win on the trot on the Perth side’s travels, hoisted them within two points of third-placed Hearts and again highlighted that Tommy Wright’s cannily assembled squad is again destined for a top-six finish.

Davidson said: “It seems to be a regular thing that we make slow starts and people are quick to start suggesting we are on the slide and, if we have sold a player, they start asking questions like ‘Where are the goals going to come from’, but we keep proving them wrong.

“The spirit and togetherness we have at this club is something you can’t buy. A lot of our success is down to sheer hard work and professionalism. It probably makes it easier for the manager because the group of players we have here sort things out ourselves and ensure that nobody lets their standards slip.

“We have become an established and consistent top-six side and we sometimes feel that we don’t get the credit we deserve, particularly when you look at how we have done with our budget compared with what other teams can spend on their squads.”

The Saints’ collective resolve was tested after, following a strong opening from a United side rooted to the bottom of the table, Mckay reacted quickest to nod beyond Alan Mannus from eight yards following fine lead-up work from Ryan McGowan and Blair Spittal.

That goal, on 33 minutes, was no less than Mixu Paatelainen’s side deserved at that stage but Chris Kane rose unmarked to power home a corner from David Wotherspoon ten minutes later. “It was bad defending,” lamented United’s Finnish boss. “We switched off and let their player run off his marker. Set-pieces are a real strength for St Johnstone and we knew that but we still make the individual mistakes.”

An old-fashioned goalmouth scramble 60 seconds from the break saw Joe Shaughnessy spurn a gaping net and Stevie McLean denied by the inside of the post before Davidson sclaffed the ball into the net from close range. “It was about half a yard out,” the 27-year-old reckoned. “Stevie still can’t believe his shot didn’t go in but luckily it landed at my feet, I just hit it and it went in off the defender.

“It is my first goal for a while and my first ever at Tannadice so I am definitely claiming it!”

McLean’s day of what-might-have-been continued when he ballooned a second-half penalty over the crossbar after John Rankin had brought Kane crashing to the ground. Davidson added: “We could have done with the third goal to make the last ten minutes more comfortable because they forced a lot of corner and we needed Alan Mannus to make a good save (from Spittal) at the end.”

Davidson’s boss revealed that the spot-kick sinner would still be taking them for the Saints. Wright said: “Stevie missed today but all penalty takers miss a few, he will be stepping up for the next one we get.”

There was spot-kick controversy at the other end early in the second period when McGowan was booked for simulation by referee Craig Thomson. “There was definitely contact and I didn’t dive,” the Australian insisted. “You could tell from the reaction of their player that he was worried as well.

“If we keep playing as well as we did today, we will start picking up points and climbing the table.”