PARTICK THISTLE 2
Lawless (17), Bannigan (52)
COVE RANGERS 2
Reynolds (81, 84)
Thistle went top of the Championship on goal difference but were left ruing a late lapse which saw them forced to settle for a point at Firhill.
They appeared to be cruising to all three thanks to goals from Stevie Lawless and Stuart Bannigan, only for a late Mark Reynolds double to draw Cove level.
Jags boss Ian McCall said: “I’m frustrated with the performance of the referee.
“He’s given a corner with four minutes to go that’s a goal kick and that’s pretty clear.
“The first goal is a deflection, the second one’s just hit off someone and fallen to Reynolds. But we should have been about four or five up at that point.
“I thought some of our football was sparkling, particularly in the first half. Some good stuff in the second half as well. We’re top of the league, but it’s two points dropped.”
Thistle made a positive start, going on the front foot from the opening whistle.
Both Brian Graham and Scott Tiffoney had decent opportunities in the opening stages but couldn’t take advantage.
However, on 17 minutes, Thistle were rewarded for the early dominance as Lawless found the net with a fantastic long-range effort.
Picking up the ball on the edge of the box, the winger had no other thought than cutting in on his left foot and hitting a powerful strike which went in off the underside of the bar.
Jags grabbed their second on the restart as Bannigan did well to pick up the scraps of a crossed ball at the far post, taking a touch before striking a low effort under Kyle Gourley.
However, rather than closing the game out, there was to be a dramatic late twist as the Cove players produced a stunning comeback.
Reynolds was the surprise man on hand to produce two similar close-range strikes from a corner and free kick to level up the scoring as the home side let their lead slip within a matter of minutes.
Cove boss Jim McIntyre said: “A combination of Kyle Gourley’s brilliant saves and some poor finishing from Thistle kept us in the game.
“What we spoke about was trying to get the next goal, because when you score a goal it puts a wee seed of doubt into the opposition’s mind and it did exactly that.”