“A shocking 1-0 victory” was how Bridge of Don Thistle boss Lewis Muirhead described his side’s unconvincing progress to the second round of the Quest Engineering Cup.
Premier League Bridge of Don recorded their one-goal win against Lossiemouth United – the team currently sitting bottom of the McBookie.com Championship.
The game’s only goal came very early in the second half when Declan Milne’s effort rebounded to Kyle Gauld, who made no mistake from close range.
Jags manager Muirhead is understandably looking for a lot more from his squad, saying: “We’ve tried a few things over the last few weeks and, on Saturday, we left out most of the regulars and gave others a chance to show what they can do.
“We still have a lot of work to do and the standards are still well short of what we expect.
“I made three changes at the interval and we got the goal, but we’re still a long way off where we need to be.
“There were a number of strange results at the weekend and maybe other sides were thinking along the same lines as ourselves, but you have to give credit the teams who produced what could be seen as surprises and not undermine what they achieved.
“That’s cup competitions for you, but, in our case, players coming in need to show more.
“We just have to concentrate on our own project, which for our club has seen massive changes on and off the park. There have been huge changes, the playing squad has changed and will continue to develop and everyone is getting used to taking more responsibility as internally things are very different.”
Thistle have released experienced campaigner Nicky Gordon, who moves on with everyone’s best wishes, says Lewis: “Nicky is at the stage of his career where he needs to be playing regularly and that’s something we couldn’t guarantee.
“He’s been a great servant and will be welcomed back here at any time.”
Thistle’s reward for their cup progress is a home clash against Buchanhaven Hearts, who defeated Banks o’ Dee – but next up is the bread and butter of the McBookie.com Premier League and the visit of Maud on Saturday, opponents who Lewis knows inside out.
He said: “We’ve managed to get the better of them twice at their place in recent weeks, and the last time we snatched a late winner, so they’ll be very much up for this one.
“I’ve said it before, but any side in this league can beat anyone else on their day.
“I’m just looking for an improvement and hopefully we’ll see who wants to be there for the right reasons, which ultimately is to win games of football.”
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