Scottish Premiership roundup: Aberdeen beat Motherwell to extend lead at the top

Aberdeen have beaten Motherwell to open up a four-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership this afternoon.

Adam Rooney's double gave the Dons a 2-0 victory and extended their winning run in the league to seven games.

Hamilton Academical made it successive wins at the start of the New Year by beating St Johnstone 1-0.

Tony Andreu's 13th goal of the season settled the contest, with James McFadden seeing a red card late on for the hosts.

Bottom of the league Ross County survived the 10th-minute dismissal of Terry Dunfield to earn a 1-1 draw at Dundee.

The Dees took the lead shortly after the break through Jim McAlister's goal, but Craig Curran hit back to salvage a point for the visitors.

At Firhill Stadium, Partick Thistle and Dundee United played out a four-goal thriller, with their match ending in a 2-2 draw.

Gary Mackay-Steven struck early on for the visitors, but goals from Ryan Stevenson and Kris Doolan saw the hosts go into the break leading.

With 18 minutes left Nadir Ciftci scored a second for United to keep them in fourth place and just one point behind Celtic.

Meanwhile, Inverness Caledonian Thistle edged to a 1-0 victory over St Mirren thanks to Billy McKay's late goal.

Results in full: Dundee 1-1 Ross County, Inverness Caledonian Thistle 1-0 St Mirren, Partick Thistle 2-2 Dundee United, St Johnstone 0-1 Hamilton Academical, Motherwell 0-2 Aberdeen