Elgin City’s disappointing start to their league campaign continued at a blustery Ainslie Park as the Black and Whites were edged out by newly-promoted Spartans who recorded their first-ever SPFL victory.
There can be no doubt that the performance of the Elgin side was affected by the howling gale which blew around the exposed Edinburgh stadium for much of the game but player/manager Ross Draper refused to use that as an excuse.
The Elgin boss preferred to focus on the shortcomings in his team’s performance as they succumbed to a defeat which has left them winless after their opening three league fixtures.
“We weren’t great today,” acknowledged Draper.
“Conditions were tough in the first half and it was just a case of getting into the dressing room at half time and having a conversation but we didn’t pass the ball at all before the interval and after the restart we just couldn’t get the ball out of the wind.
“No excuses though – it was the same for both teams.
“We need to do the right things, we need to get better on the ball.
“It’s been a harsh lesson regarding the performance.”
Team Sheet at Ainsle Park pic.twitter.com/1v0yEIbmyk
— Elgin City F.C. (@ElginCityFC) August 19, 2023
Both sides struggled to cope with windy conditions early on but it was Spartans, playing against the wind, who took control as the first half progressed.
They almost took the lead just after the half hour when their talismanic striker Blair Henderson saw his close-range effort slip past City goalkeeper Tom McHale before rebounding from a post.
The fact that Elgin made it to half time without conceding was largely down to the heroics of McHale who saved well at the feet of Henderson before displaying outstanding agility to tip Rhys Armstrong’s goal-bound free-kick over the crossbar.
With the wind behind them after the break, Spartans continued to dominate and forged ahead just after the hour when Armstrong released James Craigen who lashed the ball beyond McHale from 15 yard.
Armstrong then netted the crucial second goal two minutes later when he cut in from the right before firing home from the edge of the penalty area.
Russell Dingwall pulled one back for Elgin with 13 minutes remaining but Spartans held on for a deserved victory.
A table tighter than two coats of paint. pic.twitter.com/2qYHryUv9n
— The Spartans FC (@spartansfc) August 19, 2023
Draper said: “We did get back into the game with Russell’s goal and we had chances to nick a point. The goals we conceded were poor and overall it was not a good display.”
Draper acknowledged that Elgin remain in a transitional period following changes in both the managerial and playing staff over the summer.
He added: “It is a time of transition, of course.
“I’ve said that to the boys but we need to get results while we’re going through that stage.
“We can’t just go from A to Z straight away.
“After today we need to regroup and get ready to go again next week.”
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