Ryan hoping his late strike will put him in line for starting spot
Andy RyAn is delighted that dunfermline avoided a dreaded sense of deja vu on Saturday — and is now hopeful his clinching goal brings personal rewards as well as a precious three points.
The Pars won at East End Park in the league for the first time since March, with Ryan springing off the bench to provide the decisive moment six minutes from time.
The 25-year-old thought he had also netted a late winner against Morton a fortnight previously, only for Jim McAlister’s stoppage-time leveller to earn a draw.
However, he was not to be denied that winning feeling this time round, which also maintained Ryan’s record of never losing after scoring for dunfermline.
‘From a striker’s point of view, it is always good to score,’ he said. ‘But it also kind of takes away a bit of the pain of the Morton equaliser. When you score, it is good from a personal point of view but the main thing is we got the three points.
‘It think it shows that we are learning. We went ahead in the Morton game then conceded a goal with 30 seconds to go. We managed to grind it out here, which we didn’t against Morton. The pleasing thing is we have seen the victory out.
‘From the get-go, there is always a wee element of disappointment at not starting. I just have to keep training well and give the manager something to think about. The only way to give him a headache is to keep coming on and scoring. That is what I must keep doing.’
Greg Kiltie eased dunfermline ahead in the first half after a silky flick from Kevin nisbet allowed him to round keeper Ross doohan, but a ricochet off Pars defender Lee Ashcroft brought Ayr level three minutes before the break and Alan Forrest curled in a superb second after the restart. Ashcroft then made amends in stunning fashion, firing in a spectacular volley from the edge of the area to provide the Pars with momentum and Ryan drilled in the winner from Kiltie’s neat pass as the clock wore down.
‘It was like a (Sergio) Agüero and (Vincent) Kompany moment, I was shouting to him (not to shoot),’ said Ryan of Ashcroft’s goal. ‘The big man caught it sweet as a nut and, thankfully, it found the top corner. I was surprised it wasn’t on top of the stand.’
With dundee United losing, a draw would have taken Ayr to the top of the table, but their slick attacking was undone by defensive frailties. They will now focus on a managerial replacement for Ian McCall.
‘The decision will be made at the beginning of the week,’ said interim boss Sandy Stewart, who would not be drawn on whether Saturday would be his last game in charge.
‘I’ve got nothing to say about that,’ he added. ‘I’ve fulfilled my obligation, now we’ll just wait and see what happens.’