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Glenn Middleton (left) provided a beautiful cross for St Johnstone’s opener
St Johnstone escaped a late LASK assault to draw a draw back for Scotland in their Europa Conference League playoff.
McDiarmid Park's side triumphed over all odds with a double domestic cup and Chris Kane's efforts put them in a well-deserved lead in Austria.
Mamadou Karamoko scored a second-half penalty in order to even the match. Keito Nakamura hit Zander Clark's post in a late flurry.
Next Thursday is the second leg.
LASK was a participant in the Europa League group stage last year and made it to the last 16 of the 2020 Europa League. St Johnstone are clearly the underdogs when it comes to European pedigree. However, having fought with Turkish side Galatasaray this month in Europa League action, that was no problem.
Clark was summoned early to block a Jan Boller attempt, but that was all LASK did in the first half. Boller saved another attempt at range later, but St Johnstone were still comfortable.
They needed to strike when they had a ball break, and that was exactly what McDiarmid Park club did. Glenn Middleton's left-handed cross beat the Austrian defense to set Kane free. Kane then slid it home.
Middleton was causing a lot of problems. His next pass to Ali McCann should have led to another goal. Alexander Schlager, LASK's goalkeeper, was able to stop the midfielder from hitting his shot from outside the area.
LASK had a chance to equalize after a rare error by St Johnstone. Callum Booth was within inches of double the Scots' lead in the first half, but Jamie McCart quickly brought down Karamoko inside the penalty box. Clark was not able to stop the striker.
LASK gained momentum as they tried to make an impact in St Johnstone's half. McCart was able to clear the danger with his efforts in the dying embers. Nakamura hit the post and bounced in the box, but it was too late.
Boller tried to beat Clark again, but Clark won.
The third round of UEFA Cup 1971-72, which was the most advanced St Johnstone has reached in Europe, is the greatest. They have the potential to once again make history.
Zander Clark is the Man of the Match
Clark made a series of impressive saves to keep St Johnstone tied, especially late in the game.
What we learned
St Johnstone are more that a match for LASK. Callum Davidson's team was able to match the Austrian hosts in longer periods, proving their ability in spells.
Middleton created a lot of problems. LASK was not able to deal with his pace.
St Johnstone could be in a similar spot on the European group stage next week with a similar performance.
Next steps
St Johnstone continues to have a busy schedule as they host Dundee United in Sunday's Scottish Premiership (15:00 BST). LASK will then travel to Perth to play in the Europa Conference League second-leg playoff (19:45).
