Daily Record

I fear it will bea pitch battle at Cliftonhil­l

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PADDY CONNOLLY believes Alloa’s trip to Albion Rovers will see two pure footballin­g teams battling the Cliftonhil­l pitch.

The Wasps assistant admits the poor state of the Coatbridge club’s playing surface is a handicap for both teams as he looks for a fourth straight win on the bounce.

Connolly said: “Momentum is massive in football but going to places like Cliftonhil­l and gaining results can make all the difference.

“We’ve played the last three games on decent surfaces – two were on our pitch and the other was Hampden which are both really good footballin­g surfaces.

“We haven’t forgotten that Albion Rovers came to our ground in September, played us off the park and won 5-2. We know they’re a side who play good football so maybe that’s why they haven’t been doing as well at home.

“The surface isn’t great but it’s two teams who like to play the right way so it’ll be interestin­g.”

Rovers boss Brian Kerr admits his side need to find some home comfort – even if it means sacrificin­g some principles.

He said: “Our record at home speaks for itself. It’s not great and we need to correct that. It’s all well and good getting praise for our attacking play but we must do the other side of the game well also.

“Sometimes football is about digging in and getting a bit ugly. We may have to show that this weekend against Alloa.”

 ??  ?? FIGHTING CONDITIONS Connolly
FIGHTING CONDITIONS Connolly

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