East Stirlingshire 2 Civil Service Strollers 1: Shire fight back in stormy exchanges

East Stirlingshire v CS Strollers at The Falkirk Stadium. Picture: Scott Loudon

Goals from Mark Millar and Jamie Dishington ensured Derek Ure’s side completed a dramatic turnaround after falling behind to Jack Hodge’s fortuitous opener. Andy Rodgers was sent to the stands after he failed to keep his emotions in check having watched his side toil for much of the match.

However, despite Shire’s struggles, Derek Ure was pleased to see his side ultimately prevail.

Speaking to Shire TV, Ure said: “I think we’ve played better in other games and got nothing. I’ll take the three points and I’ll be quite happy. We showed a wee bit of character in the last 20 minutes. You creep up the league with results like this.

“For the vast majority of the game I thought we weren’t at it. We were sloppy and second best, but we’ve turned up in the last 20 minutes and really went at them. We got our just rewards in the end”.

The visitors’ uncomplicated game plan bore fruit when a long ball over the top played havoc in the Shire backline. An unfortunate deflection off Jordan Tapping left Hodge through on goal with the Strollers’ midfielder poking the ball beyond Jamie Barclay to stun the hosts.

The away side’s physical approach ultimately left assistant manager Rodgers angered, with the Shire icon ultimately being sent to the stands.

However, Ure felt his side could have matched Gary Jardine’s men. He said: “We had warned the boys as to how they were going to play. They’re energetic, competitive and ultimately, they are good football players. We needed to match them.

“I’ve got no problem if they’re going to play a bit more physical. They’re genuinely just an aggressive team. There’s no malice there”.

Shire’s breakthrough came after 70 minutes when a rare error from Jardine’s disciplined side produced a freekick on the edge of the box. Millar stepped up and curled beyond a flat-footed Josh Donaldson who had expected the Shire man to cross instead of shoot.

And, having held on to their slender advantage for most of the game, Strollers conceded a late winner through Dishington. The winger added to his four-goal midweek haul with an excellent header from Nicky Low’s late corner to complete a crucial comeback for Ure’s side.