Buddies on the better end of a 6-0 scoreline
st Mirren 6 Coulson (1), Smith (36), Stewart (47), Mcginn (53), Kellerman (82), Smith (84) dumbarton 0
Flip-flopping scores elsewhere made calculations complex. But, in terms of their own performance,st Mirren cantered into the League Cup’s last 16.
Competition winners in 2013, the Paisley club’s continued involvement this season was in jeopardy following a run which had seen their only points come from penalty shootout wins.
Here, though, the result was never in doubt as the hosts struck early, then piled on the goals to ensure they snagged one of the four places available to best runners-up in tonight’s draw.
And, after watching his team win a game 6-0 just seven days after being thrashed by the same scoreline by Jack Ross’s Sunderland, Saints new boss Alan Stubbs was a happy man.
“I’m pleased for the players and to get a result at home in front of our supporters,” he said.
“This competition comes early and you are not exactly firing on all cylinders – and we definitely fall into that bracket.
“So, to finish our last game with such an emphatic result and find out we’ve gone through is a very pleasing thing.
“We looked sharper today.”
Stubbs had Hayden Coulson, a 20-year-old left-back on loan from Middlesbrough for the season, to thank for getting his side off to a flyer by smashing a left-footed drive across Dumbarton keeper Grant Adam and into the net.
It was a terrific strike and a great tonic for the home side.
Leading from the off gave them the confidence to press on, and it was no surprise when they went two up shortly before halftime with the simplest of goals.
Paul Mcginn picked out Cammy Smith lurking at the back of the box with a fine cross and the striker nodded a lovely cushion header into the corner of the net.
The second half was a similar tale of dominance.
Ross Stewart’s close-range header made it 3-0 just after the break, before Saints skipper Stephen Mcginn further extended the score by hammering a 30-yard shot into the top corner.
Jim Kellerman made it five with a tap-in from a couple of yards, before Smith hit the goal of the day with a spectacular 35-yard lob.
Stevie Aitken, the Dumbarton manager, didn’t mince his words at full-time.
“That was embarrassing. It is not acceptable and I told the players that. However, I take responsibility because I pick the team,” he said.
“We have 12 new players in and they will need to get up to speed.”
Stubbs, meanwhile, remains keen to get more new faces in.
“I’m still hopeful of bringing in a striker, but it’s a bit different here because the window’s a bit longer. I am prepared to be patient to get the right ones in.
“I have been trying to lean on Bill (Kenwright, the Everton chairman) a little bit to get one or two out, but that charm hasn’t worked at the moment.”