Sour note to end the year
Nine-man Glencairn outgunned at Largs
Glencairn ended their competitive fixtures for 2017 with one of their poorest performances of the year as they slipped to a 2-0 defeat away to Largs Thistle.
A win would have seen The Glens move into the top half of the table and very much in touch with the promotion issue. But the defeat means they stay in 10th place and have plenty of work to do in the New Year.
There were two changes to the starting line-up after the 6-0 Scottish Junior Cup win over Stonehaven in the last game.
Craig Palmer was missing through suspension, so there was a first start for recent signing Ryan Kerr on the right side of the back three, with Craig McGregor switching to the left into Palmer’s position.
The other change saw Del McNab return on the right of midfield with Connor Brannigan dropping to the substitutes’ bench.
Top scorers Gary Smith and Jay McKay were also on the bench as they both battle to regain full fitness.
The Glens almost made a lightning start to the game as Jamie Hamilton’s pass inside the opening 20 seconds set up a chance for Alessandro Savarese.
But Thistle goalkeeper Sean Graham raced out to block right on the edge of the penalty area.
The home side took the lead in the 19th minute. Glens failed to deal with a corner and after a scramble in the box, the ball defelcted off the leg of Thistle striker Ryan McKie and into the net.
Four minutes into the second half Glens were reduced to 10 men. Craig McGregor dived into a challenge with Laurie McMaster and the referee produced a second yellow card
for McGregor. Despite that, Glens responded well and created a number of openings.
Jordan Leyden set up Hamilton for a shot which was deflected narrowly wide of the far post, Glencairn’s first shot at goal in the match coming after 63 minutes.
The best chance of an equaliser came a minute later when Smith won possession on the left flank and raced in on the angle of the penalty area. But his on-target shot, aimed for the far corner, was palmed away well by Graham.
The whole flow of the match changed in the 82nd minute
Jordan Leyden was shown yellow for a foul 25 yards from goal and, only a couple of seconds later, was shown a second for something he said to the referee. Any doubts about the destiny of the three points were blown away in the 88th minute when Largs scored a second to ease the nerves of the home support, Scott Adam cleverly lobbing Baker from a very tight angle.
Glens will now go into cold storage over Christmas and New Year before returning to action on January 6 with a league game, although no opponent has been decided yet.
They will also be watching closely this weekend when a number of Scottish Cup ties are due to be played. The next round is scheduled to take place on January 13.
Boss Willie Harvey reckons the break is coming at a bad time for his side. He said: “It‘s a bad break if you have lost, a good break if you have won.
“If we had won at Largs we would have been in the play-off places and going into the new year thinking everything was going ok.
“So I would prefer to be playing again. On the other hand we do have a few injuries and this gives them a chance to clear up.
“I’m not someone to moan about injuries because we should have a strong enough squad but this year we are a wee bit lighter.
“Over the holidays we’ll try to arrange a game and maybe have one training session where we blast them.
“We’re also looking forward to the draw in the Scottish Cup.”
Glencairn: Baker, Kerr, McGregor, Donaldson, Fraser, Leyden, McNab, Hamilton, Gormley (Smith), Savarese (Brannigan), McArdle (McKay). (Subs not used - McGuire, Hall.)