St Mirren earned a hard-fought Scottish Premiership win over Aberdeen - but it was not enough to prevent their place in the relegation play-off being confirmed.

The Paisley side knew they needed to better Kilmarnock's result to keep alive their hopes of reaching 10th place and safety.

And, although goals in each half by Richard King and Killian Phillips earned them victory, Kilmarnock's late win over Dundee means they cannot now be caught.

St Mirren now face a two-legged play-off final against either Dunfermline Athletic or Partick Thistle, who drew 1-1 in the first leg of their semi-final.

Interim manager Craig McLeish had stressed the need for a reaction after Saturday's 3-0 defeat to Kilmarnock had caused his side to slip into the play-off position.

And St Mirren showed attacking intent and energy from the start here.

Killian Phillips had the first real sight of goal, dragging a low shot wide, and it was the visitors who found a breakthrough against former manager Stephen Robinson.

Mark O'Hara picked out the run of Jacob Devaney and he flashed the ball across goal, where King turned it into the net.

Robinson brought on Lyall Cameron and Jack Milne at the break and the former almost made an immediate impact when he played in Toyosi Olusanya. But the striker's first touch allowed Alex Gogic to make a last-gasp tackle.

Aberdeen continued to push for an equaliser, but St Mirren were resolute and then took their chance to double the lead when it came.

Gogic struck the woodwork with a powerful free-kick and St Mirren reacted quickest, Mika Mandron playing the ball across goal for Phillips to score.

Aberdeen tried to muster a comeback, and substitute Graeme Shinnie crashed a shot of the bar, but St Mirren saw it out for an ultimately meaningless win.

Following the dismal performance against Kilmarnock that had dropped St Mirren into the play-off spot, McLeish wanted a reaction and got one.

St Mirren came out on top in a game that was hugely lacking in quality, showing more desire and taking their opportunities when they came.

The fight to climb out of trouble was in vain but, as a play-off awaits, a third away win of the league season can only help with confidence. Two goals on the road for the lowest scoring side in the Premiership is another positive.

The performance underlined Alex Gogic's importance to the Paisley side, and his energy and commitment seemed to spread to those around him. The Cypriot will be key if St Mirren are to keep their place as a Premiership team.

New manager Robinson had already found the results to make Aberdeen safe and four games unbeaten meant he shelved plans to look at players before next season in favour of keeping a consistent side and looking to extend that run.

Instead of seeing a reward for that faith, he saw a reminder of why Aberdeen had been in trouble in the first place. His side looked short on appetite and lacked real cutting edge, managing one shot on target in 90 minutes.

Robinson will already be looking ahead to a squad rebuild and a fresh start next season, with fringe players likely to get their chance against Dundee on Sunday.

The summer cannot come soon enough at Pittodrie.

Aberdeen manager Stephen Robinson: "The first half performance wasn't acceptable. It was one team fighting for their lives and we looked like we turned up without intensity or drive.

"There was a reaction to that at half-time and we got 20 or 25 minutes.

"It confirms the size of the task we've got. I was never in any doubt of that. We've shown resilience and gotten the results we needed but we also showed why we are in the position we've been in all season."

St Mirren interim manager Craig McLeish: "The players fought for each other and stuck together. It was a really good performance at a difficult place to come.

"Now it's about building momentum and confidence for the last three games.

"We've won four games since Christmas and I've been in charge for three of them, so I know I've made improvements. We just need to keep that going."

Aberdeen wrap up their season with a trip to Dundee next Sunday (2pm BST), while St Mirren are at home to Dundee United at the same time as they prepare for the play-off.