GARY Harkins reckons the second half of Saturday’s 2-2 draw with St Mirren in the Renfrewshire derby was as good an advert for the game as fans are likely to see this season.

Saints and Ton were seemingly testing each other out for the entirety of the first half before the game exploded into life in the second. 

It delivered two penalties, two other well-taken strikes and controversies galore in an action-packed 45 minutes.

And Harkins believes his side can be pleased with themselves for fighting back twice to leave Paisley with a point that they more than deserved.

He said: “Having gone behind twice I think it’s good to get a draw. We’re quite happy with that. The second half was a great half of football and for it being a derby it had pretty much everything you would expect. 

“The football maybe could have been a bit better but for there to be four goals in a 10/15 minute period is a good advert for the Championship. The gaffer obviously set us up to go and stop them playing and you do your best. They are a good side.

“Lewis Morgan is a great wee talent and Stephen McGinn is a good player in the middle, so they have a really good side.

“But coming to Paisley and doing as well as we can, we can take a bit of credit for that.”

Harkins bemoaned referee Steven McLean’s decision to award the Buddies a penalty for a foul he believes was outside the Morton box.

The midfielder tucked away an equalising spot-kick of his own to make it 2-2 and he insists the visitors were unlucky not to have another when youngster Scott Tiffoney was hauled down in the box in the second half.

He added: “From where I was standing their penalty was two yards outside the box. Unfortunately from where Steven McLean was he thought different.

“For my own, all penalties are the same, really. If you put them in the corner you score, if you don’t, the keeper has a chance of saving it and luckily I managed to stick it in the corner.

“I actually think we should have had at least one more because Scott Tiffoney is rugby tackled in the box. And we’ve had one, we could have had another one maybe.”

Harkins’ engine room partner Andy Murdoch scored a cracking daisy-cutter and the 32-year-old joked that he imagined dramatic commentary in his mind when Murdoch struck.

He smiled: “Andy Murdoch’s goal was a cracker, it felt like I had Andy Gray commentating on it in my head!”