Marvin Bartley admits Livingston's survival would be "an even greater escape" after a draw with Aberdeen moved the West Lothian side closer to relegation.

With the bottom team eight points adrift and having only three games left to play, a win for Kilmarnock at home to Dundee United on Saturday would be enough to confirm demotion for Livi.

Mitchel Frame's first senior goal and a Daniel Finlayson own goal put Aberdeen in front but Joel Nouble and substitute Robbie Muirhead netted equalisers.

"It's become an even greater escape, we need a favour tomorrow," said Bartley.

"If it doesn't go our way, nothing will change in the next two weeks in terms of the way we train."

As for Stephen Robinson's Aberdeen, they are nine points clear of the relegation play-off spot occupied by Killie. St Mirren, who visit Dundee on Saturday, sit two points above Killie and like Aberdeen are safe from automatic relegation.

Left-back Frame received Dennis Geiger's pass and finished well with his right foot midway through the first half.

Nouble was denied an equaliser by Dimitar Mitov's superb save but the striker was alert in the six-yard box at a corner early in the second period. Mo Sylla's header came back off the upright and Nouble forced in as Aberdeen struggled to clear.

Stuart Armstrong's free-kick was helped on by the head of Kevin Nisbet and Finlayson's intervention took the ball past Jerome Prior.

But Livi rallied again, with Muirhead curling impressively from the edge of the box and prompting a late, if unsuccessful, push for victory.

Muirhead tried again but a combination of being off target and Aberdeen getting bodies in the way prevented any further scoring.

In a predictably scrappy game, set-pieces were an obvious avenue for goals and Robinson spoke pre-match about such dangers.

The Dons were well set up to defend dead balls in the first half and enjoyed success carving openings from open play.

Toyosi Olusanya went through on Prior's goal but was well off target before being flagged offside. He had in fact been onside.

The Frame opener came from Aberdeen dominating the ball, something else Robinson cited before the game.

Brooklyn Kabangolo and Sylla had to intervene to block efforts by Liam Morrison and Geiger and Prior got down well to deny Armstrong.

And the Dons boss said afterwards: "Until it's mathematically certain, you take nothing for granted. People are playing for their future here. Everyone has to want to be part of this going forward."

Livingston fared better from set-pieces in the second half, the Nouble goal one such example, but the hosts were caught out by Armstrong's telling delivery at the other end.

Bartley's side had no option but to throw caution to the wind and were rewarded with the Muirhead strike.

He had also scored a fine goal in Livingston's Premiership play-off final-clinching win at Ross County last season. Now, the West Lothian side face an immediate return to the Championship and County have been relegated again to League 1 - just another facet of an eventful and fascinating SPFL season.

Livingston manager Marvin Bartley: "We can be disappointed with that, especially with the second goal that we do concede. Mistakes are going to happen in football, it's about how you react. The reaction from the players was fantastic.

"We had to change the shape, we were too comfortable with three centre-halves against two centre-forwards. I'm happy to go man for man and get pressure higher up the pitch.

"The players have met adversity head on. They come back into the game twice, that's about character and being a team. The 10 or 11 games under me, they've been fantastic every day.

Aberdeen head coach Stephen Robinson: "We were very good in the first half. We should have been out of sight.

"We've got done from a set play, which has happened all season. But we responded to that. Kevin scored a great goal. We made poor decisions leading up to their second goal, naive decisions.

"There's positives. The fact we didn't hold on for three points is the disappointing thing. We did a lot of good things."

Aberdeen host Dundee United on Saturday, 9 May (15:00 BST), when Livingston are away to Dundee.