Malky Mackay praised his Ross County side for the way they have recovered from their worst day of the season to ease their relegation concerns.
The Staggies looked to be staring at demotion to the cinch Championship when they languished four points adrift at the foot of the Premiership after losing 6-0 away to Hearts in the last pre-split fixture last month.
But they bounced back with a home win over Livingston in their first post-split match and then followed it up with a 3-1 victory away to Dundee United on Saturday to climb off the bottom of the table.
“It was an awful day, it was the worst performance of the year by a million miles,” said Mackay, reflecting on the way his team responded to their Tynecastle debacle. “We had a two-week break after the Hearts game and the first week back in it was time give them a cuddle and relax.
“It was time to lick our wounds, it wasn’t a time for me to react or go mad at them or go in a huff with them.
“We were going into the last five games and I know from experience that calmness in the last five games is what counts. It’s about having a calm training ground.
“Going into the Livingston game, there was a lot of pressure on us and people were wondering how we’d react but we reacted in a really positive way.
“It’s about keeping that going for these last few games. It’s really tight and we go to Motherwell next which will be really tough but we’re looking forward to it.”
Mackay was delighted to see striker Jordan White take his tally for the season to 10 goals with a close-range hat-trick at Tannadice.
“Jordan White takes some stick for a lack of goals but he’s been fundamental for me over the last two years,” said the Staggies boss.
“He works hard and other clubs know he causes them problems. It’s not just about his goals. Last year, Regan Charles-Cook, Joe Hungbo and Blair Spittal scored 27 goals (between them) and a lot of that was to do with Jordan.
“He’s looking good alongside the other strikers. I am delighted for him to get a hat-trick.”
Just as County looked doomed a few weeks ago, United seemed to be on their way to safety after winning their last three post-split fixtures.
But Jim Goodwin’s side – for whom Jamie McGrath scored a first-half penalty on Saturday – now find themselves three points adrift at the bottom going into their last three matches after suffering back-to-back defeats.
“We have been there before and got back off the bottom, so we have to do it again,” said Goodwin.
“We have three games to go so we have to try to win every single one of them because Ross County and Kilmarnock will pick up points.
“We have to raise our game for Livingston and go there with belief and personal pride. We have to show a bit of courage now.”
Late Palma strike sinks St Mirren as Celtic celebrate SPL triumph on final day
Luis Palma struck a late winner as champions Celtic twice came from behind to see off St Mirren 3-2 on the final day of the Scottish Premiership season.
It was a day of celebrations at Celtic Park for Brendan Rodgers' side, who wrapped up their third successive domestic title in midweek.
However, St Mirren threatened to spoil the party when Mark O'Hara fired them in front after just seven minutes.
Top scorer Matt O'Riley equalised for the hosts in the 21st minute, but they fell behind again just five minutes later when O'Hara doubled his tally from the penalty spot after Stephen Welsh fouled Toyosi Olusanya.
Kyogo Furuhashi levelled for Celtic before half-time, and the Hoops completed the turnaround with Palma scored the winner with four minutes remaining.
Rodgers' side finished eight points clear of second-place Rangers, who were held to a 3-3 draw by Hearts.
Despite falling behind to Lawrence Shankland's strike, goals from Ross McCausland, Todd Cantwell and Fabio Silva seemingly had the visitors on course for a comfortable win at Tynecastle.
However, there was to be a late twist with Dexter Lembikisa pulling a goal back in the 82nd minute, before Kyosuke Tagawa struck deep into stoppage time to rescue a point for the hosts.
There was also nothing to separate Dundee and Kilmarnock, who drew 1-1 in the other match on the final day.
Luke McCowan cancelled out Gary Mackay-Steven's earlier effort, though the Dundee captain squandered a glorious opportunity to complete the turnaround when he missed a penalty two minutes from time.
Al-Nassr 1-1 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic scores last-gasp penalty
Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a penalty in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time as Al-Hilal denied Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr victory in a 1-1 draw.
Mitrovic netted his 27th Saudi Pro League goal of the campaign after Sadio Mane was harshly judged to have fouled Saud Abdulhamid in the area.
Mane stuck out an arm to shield the ball, catching his opponent in the throat, though the contact appeared to have been outside of the box.
Mitrovic made no mistake to keep Al-Hilal's unbeaten campaign going.
The Serbian's spot-kick cancelled out Otavio's first-minute opener, with Ronaldo having set up his compatriot.
Champions Al-Hilal remain 12 points clear of Al-Nassr at the summit of the Pro League standings.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo the provider
Ronaldo leads the scoring charts in Saudi Arabia this season, though he had to settle for an assist on Friday.
That came from the only chance he created, with the 39-year-old limited to 25 touches, though he did have four shots.
Al-Ittihad pegged back as winless run rolls on
Mohamed Sherif scored late on as Al-Ittihad's winless run in the Saudi Pro League stretched to four games after a 1-1 draw with Al-Khaleej.
Al-Ittihad have endured a miserable title defence, and with just two games remaining, the highest the big-spending, PIF-backed club can finish is fourth.
Muhannad Al Shanqiti put them ahead on the stroke of half-time, yet despite having a further eight shots and accumulating 1.07 xG in the second half, Al-Ittihad could not add another.
Their profligacy proved costly in the 81st minute, with Egypt international Sherif snatching an equaliser for 11th-placed Al-Khaleej.
Al-Tai moved out of the relegation zone with a surprise 3-1 win over seventh-placed Al-Fateh, with Bernard Mensah scoring twice.
Al-Raed, meanwhile, claimed a 1-0 win at Al-Wehda.
Data Debrief: Kante the creator?
On the day he received a surprising France recall, N'Golo Kante created three chances for Al-Ittihad, leading the team.
On the flip side, Kante only attempted one tackle, with the midfielder showing a different side to his game, not that it proved fruitful for his team.
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