Rangers came from behind to win 2-1 at St Johnstone on Saturday lunchtime to go top of the SPL table as Celtic were later held to a 0-0 draw by Motherwell.

Walter Smith's reigning champions needed Sasa Papac to come to the rescue with a late winner to send them home from McDiarmid Park with full points.

The full-back picked the ideal time to net his first goal of the season when he grabbed the decider seven minutes from time after Kris Boyd (40) had cancelled out Collin Samuel's opener on 17.

The final result was a blow for a plucky Saints side who picked up their first SPL win last week and had looked set to claim what could have been their biggest scalp of the season.

The victory took the Gers two points clear at the top - and Celtic only pegged that back by one as they failed to break down Well.

Niall McGinn headed wide just before the break with the best chance of the first half but that only proceeded a catalogue of missed chances in the second period which led to the Hoops fans booing and jeering at the final whistle.

The first half did little to dispel the notion that Scottish football is in something of a crisis at the moment, characterised as it was by unforced errors, a lack of technique and poor finishing.

Elsewhere, Abdessalam Benjelloun scored a dramatic late penalty to give Hibernian a well-deserved 1-0 victory against Kilmarnock.

Just as it looked like the Rugby Park side might emerge with a share of the spoils after frustrating a dominant Hibernian, Gavin Skelton was penalised for fouling the Moroccan inside the area just eight minutes from time.

After a hard-fought first half, Hibs took complete control after the interval but passed up a handful of chances before Benjelloun notched the winner.

It was deja vu at Tannadice as Dundee United snatched a stoppage-time draw against Hamilton for the second successive season.

Mickael Antoine-Curier looked to have scored a hotly-disputed winner for the visitors, the on-loan Dundee striker's 65th-minute goal infuriating the home players and fans, who were adamant he was offside.

United twice hit the woodwork late on before Garry Kenneth's 93rd-minute header spared Craig Levein's men back-to-back home defeats.

Craig Dargo scored one and set up another as St Mirren came from behind to keep Falkirk bottom of the SPL thanks to a 3-1 win.

The former Inverness striker hooked home a 67th-minute equaliser and his cross soon led to Billy Mehmet's eighth goal of the season.

Substitute Tom Brighton then killed off Falkirk, who had taken the lead in the 55th minute when Brian McLean made sure Alex MacDonald's header crossed the line.

Aberdeen and Hearts shared the points in an evenly-matched encounter at Pittodrie.

Lee Miller put the home side in front three minutes before the interval, heading home Michael Paton's cross from close range.

But Hearts drew level through prospective Scotland cap Andrew Driver after 63 minutes, the Oldham-born winger coolly slotting home substitute Christian Nade's pass.