Saints started the stronger and could have opened the scoring inside five minutes when Kenny McLean latched on to a poor Keith Watson pass back.

The lively midfielder fired a low shot towards United's goal but keeper Radoslaw Cierzniak was alert to the danger and blocked to safety.

United too came close to making the most of slack defending with Saints Jim Goodwin the sinner on two occasions with poorly-judged back passes.

Luck was on Saints side though and as the first half neared its conclusion the home side took the lead.

Yoann Arquin's header was met by the onrushing McLean who finished in style with a well-placed shot past the helpless Cierzniak.

The lead didn't last long though with United's Stuart Armstrong pulling the sides level four minutes later with the sort of finish that has earned the player lots of press attention during the transfer window.

The second half was evenly-matched and although both sides had chances to secure a winner they had to settle for a share of the spoils.