Lawrence Shankland described his first ever goal in the top division as "a wee bit of magic and a wee bit of luck" as he helped Dundee United defeat St Mirren at Tannadice.

Shankland's volley on his return to the starting line-up following an ankle injury put Micky Mellon's side in front before Adrian Sporle made it 2-0.

Dylan Connolly got one back for Saints after defender Richard Tait had been shown a straight red card.

Shankland said: "It was a great win for us. We knew it was an important game and we had to bounce back from the results we've had.

"And on a personal note I was delighted to get off the mark and get my first goal of the season and first in the Premiership.

"If it is going to go in like that and that is going to be your first then it was worth waiting on. I was delighted to see it hit the net and get a win in my first start back.

"Sometimes you need a wee bit of magic and a wee bit of luck so for something to come off like that and give us the lead was good.

"It gave us confidence and we managed to hold out until half-time and get in at 1-0, then we kicked on from there.

"We then got the second, there was the sending off then we gave them a wee lift with the goal and St Mirren then came back into the game and made us defend our box. We stood up to it and held out for a big result.

"I always knew I would get Premiership goals, it just helps if you are on the pitch, playing in the league every week!

"I knew it would come eventually. I backed myself and had that belief that I would get one today."

St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin insisted his team would not lose faith despite losing their fourth game on the bounce.

He said: "Nobody at the club will let their heads go down even though we've lost a number of games back to back now.

"It could have been a different story if we had taken some of our opportunities but it just shows you the importance of the first goal in this league.

"But we'll keep believing. There's not a lot between most teams in this league."