The celebration of Higdon’s early goal had gone long before the game entered added time. For most of the intervening ninety minutes were on the receiving end of a bit of a doing. Still, when the fourth official raises his board to display the number of additional minutes and we still hold the lead there is an expectation that the points are safe. The Saints will be happy to give us some payback for Higdon’s winner scored two minutes beyond the ninety in Paisley a almost exactly a year ago.
We had a busy goalie
We had an impressive number of 19 year olds on the pitch. Though most earned their place due to the stretched nature of the squad the experience gained will prove to be useful as the season wears on. Kerr looks like a fine prospect on the left and Hetherington worked tirelessly in the holding midfield position. Cummins has already racked up an impressive amount of game time and his partnership with Hutchinson looks good.
Hutchinson will be regretting the unnecessary first booking. He gave the referee an opportunity to flash a yellow but if he learns to bite his tongue and bide his time then he’ll benefit in the long run.
Our league record now shows three draws and a win and that gives us a share of third place. It can be argued that we’ve had a decent start given the loss of experienced players in the close season. Our prospects in the next few weeks will depend heavily on the ability of the backroom staff to shorten the time it takes for injuries to repair.
Having fought so hard for the right to play in UEFA competitions last season it seems churlish to suggest that the upcoming trip to Spain is now a bit of a burden. The strain that it will place on our thin resources would be better avoided and the manager has already suggested that the younger members of the squad will be called to arms once again. Next week’s visit from Inverness is the priority now.