diff --git a/filter.go b/filter.go
index d72179e..7d2e8f9 100644
--- a/filter.go
+++ b/filter.go
@@ -88,27 +88,15 @@ func (s *Selection) Has(selector string) *Selection {
 func (s *Selection) HasMatcher(m Matcher) *Selection {
 	result := make([]*html.Node, 0, len(s.Nodes))
 
-	// If the matcher can probe for the first match in a subtree without
-	// building a result slice, use that: it avoids a throwaway one-element
-	// slice allocation for every matching child subtree.
-	if mf, ok := m.(interface {
-		MatchFirst(*html.Node) *html.Node
-	}); ok {
-		for _, n := range s.Nodes {
-			for c := n.FirstChild; c != nil; c = c.NextSibling {
-				if c.Type == html.ElementNode && mf.MatchFirst(c) != nil {
-					result = append(result, n)
-					break
-				}
-			}
-		}
-		return pushStack(s, result)
-	}
-
-	m = SingleMatcher(m)
+	// Manually create a singleMatcher (rather than using SingleMatcher, which
+	// returns a Matcher interface) so we can call its MatchFirst method
+	// directly. MatchFirst probes for the first match in a subtree without
+	// building a result slice, avoiding a throwaway one-element slice
+	// allocation for every matching child subtree.
+	sm := singleMatcher{m}
 	for _, n := range s.Nodes {
 		for c := n.FirstChild; c != nil; c = c.NextSibling {
-			if c.Type == html.ElementNode && len(m.MatchAll(c)) > 0 {
+			if c.Type == html.ElementNode && sm.MatchFirst(c) != nil {
 				result = append(result, n)
 				break
 			}
diff --git a/type.go b/type.go
index 6646c14..dd3778d 100644
--- a/type.go
+++ b/type.go
@@ -175,22 +175,31 @@ type singleMatcher struct {
 	Matcher
 }
 
-func (m singleMatcher) MatchAll(n *html.Node) []*html.Node {
+// MatchFirst returns the first node that matches, or nil if none does. It uses
+// the underlying Matcher's MatchFirst method if it provides one (cascadia-
+// compiled matchers all do), avoiding building a result slice. Otherwise it
+// falls back to MatchAll and returns its first element.
+func (m singleMatcher) MatchFirst(n *html.Node) *html.Node {
 	// Optimized version - stops finding at the first match (cascadia-compiled
 	// matchers all use this code path).
 	if mm, ok := m.Matcher.(interface{ MatchFirst(*html.Node) *html.Node }); ok {
-		node := mm.MatchFirst(n)
-		if node == nil {
-			return nil
-		}
-		return []*html.Node{node}
+		return mm.MatchFirst(n)
 	}
 
 	// Fallback version, for e.g. test mocks that don't provide the MatchFirst
 	// method.
 	nodes := m.Matcher.MatchAll(n)
 	if len(nodes) > 0 {
-		return nodes[:1:1]
+		return nodes[0]
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func (m singleMatcher) MatchAll(n *html.Node) []*html.Node {
+	// Wrap MatchFirst's single result in a slice to respect the Matcher
+	// interface's MatchAll signature.
+	if node := m.MatchFirst(n); node != nil {
+		return []*html.Node{node}
 	}
 	return nil
 }