Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Diamonds dominate Dundee Utd in draw
AIRDRIEONIANS....................................0 DUNDEE UNITED...................................0
Paul Thomson Airdrie boss Rhys Mccabe praised his Diamonds for a dominant display against Dundee United, on a night the Tangerines were declared champions.
The hosts, who have already secured their spot in the Premiership play-offs next month, outplayed their visitors but couldn’t find the goal their performance deserved as Jim Goodwin’s men held out for the point that saw them seal an immediate return to the top flight.
Despite not having the title officially secured before kick-off, the Diamonds decided to give United a guard of honour as they came out onto the pitch in a move that split opinion amongst their support.
In the end, neither side could find a way to goal, but Mccabe (pictured, right) was delighted with the response from his side after last week’s 4-0 hiding at third-place Partick Thistle.
Mccabe, whose side won the previous meeting 2-0 at Tannadice in February, said: “I thought we were excellent and all we lacked was a goal.
“We really caused them a lot of problems, and we’re probably the only team that’s done that to them this season.
“We approached the game with the right mentality, even though we didn’t have much on the line, and it was a thoroughly enjoyable 0-0.
“I was pleased with our reaction following last week’s poor second half against Partick Thistle.
“The performance level was excellent. We’ve come through it with no injuries.
“It would’ve been better if we had topped it off with a win but I can’t complain with that performance.
“It’s great to get a clean sheet.”
Gabby Mcgill will feel he could have done better with a header from Charlie Telfer’s cross after 21 minutes, heading straight at United keeper Walton.
Just before the break, Walton had to be at his best to tip Aaron Lyall’s drilled effort onto the post and early in the second half Chris Donnell fired over from a tight angle inside the sixyard box.
As the clock ticked down, Lyall again forced Walton into action as a curling effort was turned round the post, ensuring both sides took a point from the penultimate clash of the campaign.
The final whistle sparked a pitch invasion from the visiting support and stewards were left overwhelmed by the sheer numbers pouring onto the pitch.
At one point, the crossbar was close to breaking point as fans hung onto or sat on top of the woodwork, before they were eventually moved on.
The Premiership now awaits for United and Airdrie will be hoping to follow them up.
Airdrie will close out the regular Championship season on Friday night when they travel to Queen’s Park. They then face Partick in the play-off quarterfinals on May 7 and 10.