Morton fall flat in shock Irn-Bru Cup defeat to Livi
TALKING THISTLE
MORTON were brought back down to earth last night after crashing out of the Irn-Bru Cup in the first round.
Jim Duffy’s men were on the crest of a wave after Saturday’s resounding Renfrewshire derby win over St Mirren.
But they were no match for newly-promoted Championship rivals Livingston who ran out 2-0 winners at the Tony Macaroni Arena.
There was better news, though, for Saints who bounced back after thatweekend defeat with a 2-1 win over plucky East Kilbride.
A huge shock looked to be on the cards when Dominic McLaren put the Lowland League Champions in front.
But they suffered heartbreak when the Buddies scored twice in the final five minutes to deny Billy Stark’s Kilby a famous win.
Elsewhere, Clyde blew a two-goal lead as they exited the cup at the first round stage, losing out 3-2 to Stranraer at Broadwood in a match that went to extra-time.
David Goodwillie put Clyde ahead with Smart Osadolor adding a second just after half-time.
The visitors, though, came storming back and equalised through a Scott Agnew penalty and a Grant Anderson strike.
As the game went into extra-time, Ryan Wallace settled matters after Stranraer were awarded a controversial free kick from six yards.
There was also disappointment for Celtic Colts as they lost 3-1 away to League Two side Annan Athletic.
The young Hoops side were forced to play most of the game at Galabank Stadium with 10 men following Wallace Duffy’s dismissal after just eight minutes.
And though Celtic battled back into the game after going 2-0 down when Regan Hendry scored, the home side extended their lead late in the game to book their place in the next round of the competition.
Albion Rovers, however, booked their place in the second-round draw with a dramatic 5-4 penalty shoot-out win over Spartans after the game ended goalless after 90 minutes at Cliftonhill