BEN RAMAGE
Brandon Mason insists it was “dangerous“to let St Mirren’s frosty clash with Kilmarnock go ahead.
Saturday’s match was touch and go, with the defrosting artificial surface at Rugby Park narrowly passed as playable after a midday inspection, but the mercury hardly rose above freezing in Ayrshire all afternoon.
Mason revealed his team-mates were concerned about falling on the rockhard surface in a game which saw the Buddies eventually sealing a late 1-1 draw thanks to ex-Saints keeper Danny Rogers’ howler.
Asked about the condition of the pitch, he told Express Sport: “To be brutally honest, I thought it was quite dangerous.
“Obviously it’s the same for everyone on the day. We were ready to compete and give our best to come away with the three points.
“It’s definitely one of the hardest pitches I’ve ever played on.
“With it being Astro and quite icy, it was very difficult for us to turn safely and run properly.
“We don’t want to make any excuses, but it was very difficult out there.
“We fought hard and, in the end, we’ve got a point away from home.”
St Mirren looked like they were being frozen out by a dominant Kilmarnock side, who had led thanks to Danny Whitehall’s clinical header.
That was until Rogers’ last-minute mistake, with the former Saint coming back to unwittingly help his former side by walking Kyle McAllister’s deflected cross into his own net.
Coventry City loanee Mason admits it was one of the strangest equalisers he has seen, but believes the Buddies deserved a point for not giving up on the match and pressing hard for a leveller late on.
He said: “Coming into the game, we always knew it was going to be difficult to win there.
“We’ve been in great form so far this season, but it was really difficult conditions obviously, with the pitch being just about passed playable.
“We stuck at it until the very end. The first half we were off our game but we picked up in the second half.
“If the game had gone on longer, I think we could have won it.
“I haven’t seen the equaliser back yet but the referee has made the decision and luckily for us it has gone in our favour. It was definitely a strange one.
“Countless times this season since I’ve come in, we’ve always believed we can still get something from the game, even if we’ve gone behind.
“We always believe we can come back.’
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