A much improved second half performance saw Stirling Albion defeat a poor Ayr United team by 3 goals to nil, a result which virtually guarantees a fourth place finish in the league.

The Binos showed one change from last week with Martin Glancy coming in for Douglas Wilson who was on the bench. This resulted in Robert Dunn being pushed out onto the wing. However, Dunn only really came into the game when Glancy went off in the second half and Dunn moved into the centre.

The first half was totally forgettable with very few incidents of note. The highlight, in fact, was an exchange of words between a steward and an Albion fan who happened to stand on the wrong side of the barrier whilst talking to a fellow supporter. Considering the small number of travelling supporters, the steward was rather officious in the handling of the situation. As for the action on the pitch, the match resembled a boxing match where both boxers sparred for an opening. Chris Aitken was booked in the 17th minute for a late challenge on Conway whilst Hillcoat saved a fierce Hay shot 5 minutes before the interval. Just before half time, a Di Giacomo shot carried more threat to the seagulls perched on the roof of the enclosure than it did to Hillcoat. However, to be fair to the Killie man, the ball did appear to bobble just before he hit it.

Half time came with the score 0-0.

The second half started with an immediate substitution by Ayr. Unfortunately, this was not announced by the stadium announcer, therefore I was unable to ascertain who had come on. Also, perhaps as an indication on how bad the first half was, the ball girls did not re-appear.

Thankfully, the second half was a vast improvement as Stirling put pressure on Ayr from the re-start. A thrown in from Paul Hay found Di Giacomo who turned and played the ball into Glancy. The little striker was a touch fortunate that the ball broke off an Ayr defender but there was no mistake in the quality of the finish with his left foot shot going in at the far post. 1-0 to Stirling.

GLANCY SWIVELS IN THE BOX TO SCORE ON HIS RETURN.

Dunn became the second player to be booked when he put a block on Conway. 2 minutes later, Ayr’s McLaughlin was booked for a foul on Glancy. This resulted in Glancy being substituted with Dougie Wilson coming on. Hogarth, in the Stirling goal, was brought into action when he produced an excellent save to deny Boyd.

Di Giacomo had a chance to score when a ball from Wilson went over the top of the Ayr defence. Unfortunately, Jacko was unable to control the bouncing ball and Hillcoat nipped in to collect. Ayr then brought on Dunlop in place of Tait.

Stirling won a corner when a cross from Devine found Dunn whose shot was deflected past. From the corner, the ball was cleared only as far as Devine who took one touch to his left and sent an exquisite left foot shot past Hillcoat from about 30 yards out. 2-0 to the Binos and the three points looked in the bag.

DEVINE HAS JUST STRUCK THE SHOT FROM 30 YARDS AND BEAT HILLCOAT

Ayr then brought on Andrew Ferguson in place of Henderson. Robert Dunn then rounded off a good second half performance with a well taken goal. The ball was played through by Wilson and, as Di Giacomo lazily walked back from an offside position, Dunn ran through from a deep position and collected the ball. He rounded the keeper and, although a defender did manage to get back to the goal line, Dunn calmly slotted a right foot shot into the net to make it 3-0 to the Binos. The Ayr defence may have hesitated thinking that Di Giacomo was offside but, as he was not interfering with play, or being active to use the modern phraseology, the referee quite rightly allowed play to continue.

DUNN HAS JUST COMPOSED HIMSELF AFTER ROUNDING THE KEEPER AND SLOTS THE BALL AWAY CALMLY.

The Binos had claims for a penalty turned down when Wilson appeared to be manhandled to the ground. However, it was probably more a case of Wilson not having the body strength to withstand the challenge.

As the match drew to a close, Stirling made 2 substitutions with Canning coming on for Aitken with 5 minutes to go and, with 2 minutes left on the clock, Craig Ferguson replaced MacDonald. There was no further scoring and the match finished 3-0 to the Binos.

A comfortable victory in the end considering a few of the players did not play at their best. Hogarth had a couple of good saves and confidently dealt with everything that came his way. Devine was the outstanding defender although McNally’s passing was of a high quality. MacDonald had a very quiet game in midfield and Aitken was probably the pick of the midfield. Up front, Di Giacomo seemed disinterested. Whether it was the barracking he was getting from the Ayr fans, I don’t know, but I was expecting a much better performance from him.

Next week the Binos entertain Dumbarton at Forthbank and I hope that there is a big turnout of fans for the penultimate home game of the season.