IT all ended in tears for Aberdeen.

Aside from the curious handling of John McGinn's cross into the home penalty area by Mark Reynolds five minutes from the end and the subsequent equaliser, it was puzzling to observe just what a pummelling the visitors had taken while escaping the Granite City with a point.

Reynolds had opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time while Peter Pawlett's strike early in the second half had simply underlined the superiority of Derek McInnes's free-flowing side. Still, questions will be asked over an inability to capitalise on innumerable scoring opportunities, before and after those two goals, despite Callum Ball's surprise strike for the visitors immediately after Pawlett's strike.

It was a fourth successive home game for Aberdeen, having recorded two SPFL Premiership wins over Ross County and Inverness Caledonian Thistle on the last two Saturdays, with a League Cup victory over Livingston in between.

The confidence in the home changing-room was, therefore, predictably up-beat, while there are smiles on the faces of the supporters these days. Could a stuttering St Mirren change those expressions of contentment in this rearranged fixture?

The home side had Niall McGinn back from injury - he had missed the last two games because of a hamstring problem - which meant he moved into a wide left position while Andrew Considine was relegated to the bench and Jonny Hayes occupied his place at left-back. And it was a ferocious 16-yard strike from Hayes that would have opened the scoring after five minutes had it not been for an acrobatic stop by Marian Kello, the St Mirren goalkeeper.

The visitors gave Gregg Wylde a start for the injured Jeroen Tessalaar and while they were set up to attack, they were clearly taxed by the energy of the hosts, particularly down the left where the pace of Hayes and Pawlett proved a handful for Jason Naismith as they endeavoured to provide opportunities for David Goodwillie and Adam Rooney, the latter having scored five goals in those previous three games.

But it was Wylde's tenacity in the 17th minute that forced Ash Taylor, the Aberdeen centre-back, into a mistake, offering the St Mirren winger a scoring chance he should have taken rather than fire his shot off the legs of Jamie Langfield, the Aberdeen goalkeeper. Moments later, as McGinn laid the ball off for McLean, there were gasps of disbelief from the home support as the Paisley side's midfielder cracked a 30-yard strike off Langfield's crossbar, sending a message of intent to their opponents.

Such aspirational manoeuvres were indicative of the open nature of the football from both sides and Goodwillie's clever play in linking with McGinn left the Northern Ireland internationalist forcing Kello into a finger-tip touch over the bar from the edge of the area.

The partnership of Rooney and Goodwillie, so productive for the home side in recent times, again caught the eye with a series of excellent moves, affording the visitors no respite. When the Irishman nodded square for his team-mate seven minutes from the break, it took a wonderful reflex stop from Kello to prevent an opener.

Yet, as most supporters suspected, it was simply a matter of time until St Mirren caved-in. They did so seconds before the interval, despite strenuous efforts to stop a number of attempts to convert a corner-kick. It took a hopeful, close-range blast of a loose ball from Reynolds to secure a much-deserved lead, his shot somehow evading several pairs of legs to end up in the net.

The rhythmic movement they had shown in a sparkling first half was missing from much of Aberdeen's play after the break, but it did not prevent them from increasing their lead in the 55th minute as the Paisley defence could not clear the danger presented by a Hayes cross, allowing Pawlett to drill home the loose ball from 16 yards.

Yet, as if to proclaim that they were not accepting defeat so readily, St Mirren raced up the pitch from the kick-off and Ball finished off Wylde's teasing cross into the area by side-footing the ball past Langfield.

It was a stark reminder that the visitors did not consider themselves out of this game.

Aberdeen's attacks continued almost unabated, however, and twice Shaleum Logan hit spectacular strikes, the first a whizzing effort brilliantly stopped by Kello.

Then the moment that changed the game and sent the St Mirren team bus back to Paisley with a bunch of happy passengers.

McGinn's speculative ball into the Aberdeen area was inexplicably handled by Reynolds, affording McLean the chance to deploy his expert shooting as his spot kick left Langfield without a hope of saving it.