Dundee beat struggling Aberdeen for first league win of season

Dundee finally secured their first cinch Premiership win of the season by beating Aberdeen 2-1 at Dens Park.

The Dark Blues opened the scoring in the 48th minute through on-loan Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths.

The home side made it 2-0 shortly after with Luke McCowan on the mark but the Dons quickly pulled one back through Christian Ramirez.

However, Aberdeen could not find an equaliser, with the defeat piling more pressure on Pittodrie boss Stephen Glass.

The game kicked off at 6pm in a bid to boost international coverage and there was an opportunity in the first minute when McCowan hit a shot from the edge of the Aberdeen box that goalkeeper Gary Woods pushed the ball to safety.

The Dons had their first chance in the 10th minute with Jack MacKenzie hitting an angled drive that home keeper Adam Legzdins easily held.

Ryan Hedges then had an opportunity when he found himself free in the Dundee box at a corner but he made a mess of his attempted shot.

Aberdeen piled the pressure back on the home side with Ramirez having a great diving header cleared off the Dundee line by Griffiths before Jonny Hayes hit a fierce long-range shot just wide.

Three minutes into the second half, the stalemate was broken as Dundee winger Paul McMullan sent a searching cross-field pass to Griffiths in space on the right and the Scotland international took his time before drilling a low shot past Woods.

Aberdeen looked for an instant response and Lewis Ferguson had a 22-yard shot tipped for a corner by Legzdins.

However, the home fans were celebrating once more in the 62nd minute as Dundee doubled their advantage through McCowan, who hit a shot from the edge of the box past the despairing dive of Woods.

The Dons grabbed a lifeline five minutes later when MacKenzie delivered a low cross from the left all the way to the back post and Ramirez turned the ball home from a tight angle.

As the clock ticked down and tempers started to boil over, Dons goalkeeping coach Gordon Marshall and Dundee boss James McPake were both red-carded and sent to the stand.

Dundee held on to get their first win of the season and move off the bottom of the table.