CHAMPAGNE SUPERNOVAS
Ayr’s shooting stars rocketing towards Ally’s 104- goal tally
Goal crazy Ayr United are enjoying their best start to a season for 58 years.
The astonishing haul of 65 goals in 21 games is the best since 1958- 59 when Jackie Cox’s team romped to the old Second Division title.
Amazingly, they topped it with 67 that season before going on to score 139 for the club’s best ever competitive tally.
Ayr are on course to eclipse Ally MacLeod’s 1987- 88 champions who bagged 95 goals from 39 league games with John Sludden scoring 31 of them.
United hit 104 in total that season and received a Daily Record crate of champagne for the first team to score a century.
Boss Ian McCall admits his table toppers have goals all through the team and has the problem of how to fit in all his scorers.
He said: “We’ll always score goals. I can’t guarantee we’ll win the league or promotion but hopefully we’ll always entertain.
“It’s a real dilemma whether to go with three up front or leave one on the bench. We’re scoring a lot and are defending well, with five clean sheets in the last eight games.”
Despite missing September, Craig Moore leads with 15 goals, while Lawrence Shankland now has 12 from 10 games.
Michael Moffat and Declan McDaid, who hit a double in the 6- 2 win at Banks O’Dee, are both on eight.
Shankland and David Ferguson are signed only until January but both look set to pen extended deals.
McCall said: “For Lawrence, it is a chance to relaunch himself. He loves it here and looks capable of playing at a higher level which hopefully we can offer him next season.
“Young Ferguson looks a real prospect and has done well. I hope to have good news on both of them very shortly.”
McCall admits to disappointment at Monday’s Scottish Cup draw which gives Ayr a last- 32 tie at home to Arbroath on January 20, two weeks after they play them in the league at Somerset.
He said: “It’s a team we already play four times, which is the one big disappointment of the Scottish Cup.
“It’s a tie we can win — but then Dick Campbell ( Arbroath boss) will think the same thing.”
Meanwhile, United will strongly defend a Notice of Complaint that has been served on them by the SFA after the Banks O’Dee cup tie.
Cup rules dictate team lines must be submitted to the referee 75 minutes before kick- off.
Ayr are accused of missing the deadline but it is believed they will point out they gave their sheet before the cut- off to a home official who said he would copy it and hand to it the ref.