Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Fan shocks it to them
A fuming Ai rdrie fan confronted chairman Jim Ballantyne following a humiliating Scottish Cup exit at the hands of Highland League outfit Cove Rangers.
The Diamonds conceded two late goals to crash out of the cup to the non-league visitors at New Broomfield as just over 400 fans watched the disappointing display - but the meagre turnout vocally vented their frustration at the final whistle.
One fan made his way towards the directors box - where Ballantyne and bidder Seref Zengin were seated - and went on an angry rant after months of turmoil at the Excelsior Stadium.
First team coach Stephen Findlay admitted the squad were in disbelief after the game, but refused to blame the behind the scenes troubles for the shock defeat.
He told the Advertiser: “The players we have here should have been good enough to
Airdrie........2 Cove Rangers..........3
Stephen Findlay dubbed his Airdrie flops naive after they crashed out of the Scottish Cup to Highlanders Cove Rangers.
The Diamonds led at the Excelsior Stadium going into the final four minutes thanks to goals from loan duo Jordan McGregor and Jake Hastie – with Harry Milne’s goal appearing to be nothing more than a consolation for the visitors.
However, a Scott Ross header and Milne’s second handed Cove a historic win and a place in the next round.
Furious first-team coach Findlay admitted his squad were ravaged by injuries – however refused to use that as an excuse for the embarrassing third round exit.
“We had four players out from the Stranraer game – and ideally after a win you are keeping the same 11 who play so well the week before,”he said.
“Dean Cairns was having a great game and we were looking defensively more secure when he was on – but he picked up an injury and we had to make a change.
“With all of that said, we have the players in that squad to win that game.
“The players showed a real naivety. They didn’t keep their discipline and couldn’t handle Cove when they pushed higher up the pitch. You are worried about the second goal going in, and when that happens it was like a body blow.
“We had most of the possession and lost with just five minutes to go – you are just left in disbelief, you’re angry, and frustrated.”
Airdrie opened the scoring after Hamilton loan defender McGregor unleashed a thunderbolt from distance in 33 minutes, however poor defending gave Grant Campbell room to slip through Cove attacker Milne, who had time and space in the six-yard box to tie the game.
The Diamonds started the second half brightly and Jake Hastie smashed the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the box just after the restart. Ross then beat Hearts loan keeper Kelby Mason to a looping cross levelling the game in 86 minutes, and Milne sealed the dramatic upset with just seconds left as he beat the lacklustre Diamonds backline to a corner and headed in.