'We need to react to this setback' - Gary Naysmith on Stenhousemuir's first league defeat since August

A Hamish Ritchie brace either side of captain Gregor Buchanan’s first-half leveller was enough to seal the three points for the Blue Toon, and while the club's record 12-match winning run was brought to a halt, they are still a whopping 13 points clear at the top of League Two.

Boss Gary Naysmith admitted the “better team probably won” on the day, telling Warriors TV: “It was always going to eventually happen. It was an even match. We probably shaded the start of both halves with Peterhead then coming into it. The wind picked up second half and that did play its part. We defended really well in the main and Darren (Jamieson) didn’t have much to do outwith the goals.

“The two goals for them, we could have done better in both moments, and that is the thing for me. That is the disappointing part. We gave away too many fouls after going 2-1 down too and we need to learn from that. The key when you go behind is to stay patient and believe that you will get the equaliser. We were a little rushed and panicked.”

And on his side’s record-breaking run, which saw Stenny go 17 matches without tasting defeat on league duty, stretching all the way back to a 4-2 defeat by this weekend’s opponents Dumbarton back in August, Naysmith added: “It was never about the record for us. Coming here today, it wasn’t about getting to 13 wins for us – it was about getting three points further ahead of Peterhead. They now have three back us on. During our run, we weren’t the better team in every game, we’ll happily admit that.

“Even last week against Stranraer (1-0 victory) things probably went for us. Today we didn’t deserve any more than a point, and that would have been a good result for us. It was not to be. I told the guys that they should be proud of the run but that it has to be forgotten about now. We need to react to this setback. We haven’t done anything yet. We need to focus on Dumbarton now.”

Meanwhile, the boss revealed that centre-back Nicky Jamieson’s injury issue isn’t “long term” but that the defender may miss out against the third-placed Sons at Ochilview this weekend.