Shotts unravel after Hunter red card
Shotts boss John Mckeown refused to be too downhearted after his side were sent packing out of the Scottish Cup.
The odds were always stacked against Shotts as they travelled to face an on-form Largs Thistle team currently sitting fourth in the West Region Premiership - two divisions above them.
The visitors went toe-to-toe with their opponents though and made it to halftime with the scores level.
A difficult second half unravelled when Adam Hunter was sent off and Thistle’s passing prowess saw them put four past Johnny Murdoch.
Mckeown said: “We gave a really good account of ourselves in the first half.
“The game plan was working well, with us staying solid and breaking away when we could.
“They scored a very scrappy first goal and we almost equalised through a Chris Smith header.
“They then broke up the park and Adam Hunter pulled their player back for a yellow card. He then swore, I think at himself, but the referee thought it was directed at him and decided to send him off. I know Adam from my time at Cumnock. He’s a quiet lad and would never mouth off at a referee.
“The decision spoilt the game as a contest because their experience told from then on.
“It was an afternoon to forget really but we can be proud of the first half. They’re a right good team and we matched them.”
Whilst disappointed to miss out on the fourth round, Mckeown is happy enough to get his players’ focus back on league after an excellent start to the season.
They now face two home games which Mckeown is targeting for wins as the team test their promotion ambitions.
He said: “The Maybole game has been changed to Hannah Park, which means we have a good run of games at home.
“I’ve said before that if we really want to push for one of those top three promotion places we need to be winning the majority of our home games.
“If we have aspirations of promotion we need to win more games at Hannah Park, full stop.
“There’s a hell of a long way to go but we’re sitting in a good position just now.”