St Johnstone suffered a sobering derby defeat to Dundee to drop to 10th in the Premiership.
And manager Callum Davidson admitted his team were out-fought at Dens Park.
Danny Mullen’s goal near the end of the first half secured the three points for the Dark Blues and made it a run of one victory in eight games for the Perth side.
Saturday’s clash with bottom side Ross County now takes on huge significance – as does the January transfer window.
“I’m bitterly disappointed,” said Davidson.
“What we pride ourselves on is hard work, our defensive shape and our attitude to win the ball.
“That was lacking I thought.
“They were better all over the pitch.
“When you do that you make it really hard for yourselves to win a game of football.
“That cost us.”
It’s very rare Davidson has had to speak about his Saints side being out-worked.
“That’s probably the most disappointing thing,” he said.
“I said that after. In any game it’s important how you battle and fight.
“It’s never easy to win a game. We had a good travelling support on a cold Wednesday night and didn’t do it justice.”
Dundee 1-0 St Johnstone: Red-hot Danny Mullen sees Dee leapfrog Saints
