Elgin City midfielder Angus Mailer admitted his team’s efforts to build on last week’s Scottish Cup heroics fell flat once again at Borough Briggs.
City slumped to a 1-0 defeat at home to Stranraer and have won just once in their last eight league matches on home soil.
Denied a place in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals by a last-minute Ayr United goal a week earlier, manager Gavin Price asked for a repeat performance but didn’t get the response he was looking for.
And Mailer, who missed two good chances including a strike off the Stranraer bar, said City weren’t good enough on their return to league business.
He said: “We didn’t play to our strengths, especially in the first half so we need to have a rethink about things and go again.
“The aim was to take the positives from last week into today and we just didn’t do that at all. We just couldn’t get going and we need to take a good look at ourselves.”
Scott Robertson’s clinical 22nd minute strike won Stranraer the three points, and Mailer reflected on his own scoring opportunities before and after the half time break.
“The one in the first half, I probably had time to take a touch but I just wanted to make good contact and ended up sending it over the bar.
“The one in the second half when I hit the bar, the ball came just behind me and that was a bit annoying. Getting a goal at that stage would have given us some confidence for the rest of the game.”
City manager Gavin Price said: “It’s another very, very poor performance.
“We need to start adapting to our pitch, and I asked the players to adapt by playing a different way and we couldn’t do that.
“We’ve all got to hold our hands up and say that was not good enough.”
City are quickly back in action with a trip to Albion Rovers on Tuesday and a visit to leaders Dumbarton on Saturday.
Price added: “For some reason our form away from home is much better this season so we have to use that as a positive and go down to Albion on Tuesday with confidence in how we play on the road, and make sure that we prepare ourselves for a battle and get a result.”
An Elgin side without captain Matthew Cooper, Brian Cameron and Jake Dolzanski started brightly and spurned a glaring opportunity on ten minutes.
On-loan Aberdeen full back Evan Towler sent over a free kick from the right and Ross Draper headed wide with the goal at his mercy on ten minutes.
Russell Dingwall fired wide on the stretch and Kane Hester was crowded out with Aaron Reid free on his right as City chased the opening goal.
Instead it came at the other end as Aaron Brown’s cross fell for Scott Robertson on the edge of the box and he fired high past Thomas McHale.
Angus Mailer shot over for Elgin while James Hilton missed two good chances in quick succession for the visitors before half time.
POST-MATCH
Hear from our boss Gavin Price following our loss to Stranraer. pic.twitter.com/RxqmeH0J0R
— Elgin City F.C. (@ElginCityFC) February 19, 2023
Aberdeen loan teenager Reid failed to appear for the second half, replaced by sub Dylan Lawrence.
City were unlucky not to level ten minutes after the break. A Towler free kick on the right was met by headers from Jevan Anderson and Draper, keeper Matthew Connolly punched only as far as Angus Mailer whose first time strike hit the bar.
Stranraer had a chance on 67 minutes when Kyle Girvan’s header off a Brown cross was blocked on the goal-line by home stopper Owen Cairns.
City sub Mitchell Taylor did beat the keeper with an 82nd minute strike but defender Girvan got back on his own line to make a game-saving clearance and the visitors held on for a deserved three points.
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