From The Courier
ARBROATH manager John McGlashan refused to blame his side's inevitable tiredness after their marathon mid-week CIS Cup tie against Inverness Caledonian Thistle for their 2-1 home league defeat at the hands of STIRLING ALBION.
The Lichties took the lead after 20 minutes when a pinpoint through pass by John Fraser found Scott Gates in space and the striker took his time to slot the ball past the advancing Myles Hogarth.
The visitors equalised five minutes later when an Ian Harty shot was turned in by John O'Neill, with referee Brian Winter waving aside Arbroath claims that the midfielder was offside.
Albion went ahead four minutes after the restart when a defensive mix-up in the Arbroath box saw the usually reliable Steven Rennie and Jamie Bishop leave a loose ball for each other, and David McKenna sneaked in to lob the ball over Darren Hill.
Mark Docherty saw red on 56 minutes when he over-reacted to a Barry Sellars challenge and Arbroath's numerical advantage eventually earned them a penalty on 78 minutes when Paul Murphy pushed Terry Masson off the ball. Sellars struck his spot-kick hard and low to Hogarth's left but the keeper guessed correctly and denied Arbroath the equaliser.
"This was always likely to be a different sort of game from the cup tie and so it proved to be,'' said McGlashan. I think we looked a bit lethargic for the whole game and, although Docherty's dismissal and the penalty gave us the opportunity to salvage something and maybe get a grandstand finish, it wasn't to be.
"I've told the lads that the line between success and failure is even thinner this season than it was last season but we have learned that we have to play every game to the last minute. I thought we competed pretty well but we just didn't get the rub of the green when we needed it.
"We did put them on the back foot and pin them down a bit more when they were down to 10 men and the penalty was a big moment. If it had gone in it would have lifted us but, instead, Hogarth's save from what was a decent shot gave our visitors a boost when they needed it."
Stirling boss Alan Moore said, "I'm delighted to get our first win and thought we dominated for most of the game. I wasn't happy when Arbroath caught us out with their goal but we worked hard and got the result I think we deserved.
Arbroath captain Barry Sellars missed a late penalty as the Red Lichties slipped to their third league defeat in a row - this time to 10-man Stirling Albion.
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Gayfield manager John McGlashan refused to get too downbeat. He said: "If the line between success and failure was very thin in the Third Division, it's even thinner in the Second. We just didn't get the luck we needed, especially near the end of the game.
"We had an opportunity when Stirling had a man sent off. Then we got the penalty, but it wasn't to be.
"I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. We've got a free week now and we'll regroup, keep working hard and prepare properly for the next game, against Brechin." The home side seemed to be suffering a hangover from their exhausting midweek exploits in the League Cup tie with Caley Thistle - which the SPL club won after extra time and penalties.
Stirling started brightly and spurned a number of early chances, but it was Arbroath who took the lead after 20 minutes. Scott Gates clipped the ball over the advancing Myles Hogarth after latching on to a perfect defence-splitting pass from John Fraser.
But the visitors were level just four minutes later, John O'Neil being in the right place to deflect an Ian Harty shot beyond the reach of Darren Hill in the home goal.
Stirling edged ahead four minutes after the interval when slack defending allowed David McKenna to nip in between Jamie Bishop and Steven Rennie and lob the ball over Hill.
There was controversy a few minutes later when Arbroath's Sellars tangled with Albion's Mark Docherty. Sellars was booked, but Docherty was shown a red card after referee Brian Winter consulted his assistant.
Arbroath's hopes of salvaging at least a point were raised 12 minutes from the end when substitute Terry Masson was pushed in the box by Paul Murphy.But Sellars's spot kick was brilliantly turned around the post by Hogarth.
Stirling manager Allan Moore was delighted to get his first win of the season.He said: "We've been playing some good football so far this season without getting the rewards for it. I thought we played some good stuff."