Partick Thistle 1 Aberdeen 2: Smash and grab win helps Dons close the gap

Aberdeen scored twice in two second-half minutes to beat Partick Thistle 2-1 and move to within a point of the top of the Scottish Premiership.

After an evenly contested hour of action at Firhill, Partick took the lead in spectacular fashion when Steven Lawless rattled a superb 25-yard strike into the top corner of the net.

But Aberdeen winger Jonny Hayes, making his return to action after three weeks out with a hamstring injury, darted down the left wing just 14 minutes later and sent over a cross that Andrew Considine headed home to level the match.

Before Partick could regroup, Aberdeen substitute Barry Robson delivered a corner that found Simon Church in the box and his header beat Tomas Cerny to make sure all three points went towards Aberdeen's title challenge.