Five-star display from Athletic earns cup win

After going one down early on against a side two tiers above his East of Scotland Football League first division conference X outfit, Irvine’s side hit back to move into second spot in group C.

Goals from Falkirk loanee Cammy Williamson, Scott Sinclair, Michael Wallace, Tiwi Daramola and Grant Rose sealed the win.

Irvine said: “I can’t complain. It was a superb performance against a side way above us.

“The pitch was big but actually in a dreadful condition, and it was a really tough one to play on.

“No player could be faulted, and it was match that we controlled from start to finish just about. The first goal for them is just one of them. It bounces off a guy on the pitch and it sends the boy through to score.

“Other than that, they had no chances really and they had no pressure on us.”

What impressed Irvine most was the switch to an unfamiliar style of football due to the pitch.

He explained: “We played a different way with no playing out from the back.

“With the bone-dry pitch, we decided to let our goalkeeper Fraser Currid just play it straight to their half.

“We never kick it long normally but it worked well and the players did the dirty things well to get on to them.”

Next up for Athletic is St Andrews United in their last group match on Saturday.