THE race continues, but only just.
The fight to finish seventh may not be as lucrative as the ones for the title or European places, or as nerve-shredding as the one to avoid the relegation play-offs, but it is has been the target for Hamilton and Partick Thistle since the Premiership split.
With just two games left, it is Accies that are still in pole position after a 1-1 draw with Partick Thistle at New Douglas Park. On an afternoon where Martin Canning's side all but secured seventh, Thistle confirmed they will finish no lower than eighth.
There may have been points and potentially a place at stake here but it had all the feel of an end of season encounter as neither side got anywhere near producing their best. It made for a lethargic 90 minutes as the goals and the points were shared but few plaudits were handed out.
The signs appeared ominous from the start and it quickly turned into a match that won't live long in the memory. There was no flow to the action, with a series of injury stoppages, two for more serious incidents, seeing the clock tick into a 53rd minute before the players headed to the dressing room at the interval.
Michael Devlin was first to require a lengthy period of treatment on the plastic pitch after he went down unchallenged inside his own half clutching his knee. After several minutes on the turf, he was stretchered off to a ripple of applause and concern from the home crowd.
"When the pitch is sticky like it was today then it's something we worry about with regards to injury," Canning said. "That said, I don't think Michael's injury was anything to do with the pitch, it wasn't a twist caused by the pitch. I will be speaking to the groundsman about it."
Before and after the first injury break, it was Thistle who were showing more attacking intent and Ryan Stevenson saw a fierce free-kick saved before Lyle Taylor wasted the best chance of the half, blasting his effort high over the bar with just Michael McGovern to beat. There was soon another stoppage to halt the Jags in their tracks, though. This time it was Stevenson who was replaced as he hobbled off with a knee injury.
"His studs got caught in the turf and his knee locked but we are hoping it is not too bad," Alan Archibald, the Thistle manager, said. "The medical team are not too worried at the moment but we will assess him over the weekend and hopefully he is fine.
"The pitch doesn't help. But I am more concerned about the surface stopping you playing. It is good when it is wet, we train on it, but when it dries out it is hard to get the ball down and play."
Before the prolonged first half finally came to an end, Taylor and Darian MacKinnon would also require treatment and Hamilton came close, and then closer, to breaking the deadlock. A Louis Longridge drive went just wide of the post but it was a Jesus Garcia Tena free-kick that brought the Accies fans to their feet, the ball striking the woodwork and then hitting the line as Thistle breathed a sigh of relief. In terms of excitement, it was as good as it would get for some time as the malaise once again set in.
It was a low quality, low key affair but Thistle produced a spark saw them take the lead, Stephen O'Donnell finishing well after linking with Kallum Higginbotham down the right.
It was an advantage they never looked like losing but, with their fourth successive win in sight, the Jags did just that as Greg Docherty headed home an Ali Crawford corner at the back post.
It denied Thistle two points and earned Accies one as the efforts of both teams were rewarded in the Lanarkshire sunshine. Neither side could say they were hard done by not to take all three, though.
Hamilton Accies: McGovern; Lyon, Devlin (Tagliapietra 16), Garcia Tena, MacDonald; Gillespie; Imrie, Crawford, MacKinnon (Docherty 79), Longridge; Scotland (Scotland 60)
Subs not used: Hill, Hendrie, Watson, El Zubaidi
Booked: Crawford, MacKinnon
Partick Thistle: Fox; O'Donnell, Frans, Balatoni, Booth; Craigen, Bannigan; Higginbotham, Stevenson (Fraser 32), Lawless; Taylor (Doolan 60)
Subs not used: Gallacher, Elliott, Richards-Everton, Wilson, Keenan
Booked:
Referee: Stephen Finnie
Att: 2342
Man of the Match: Stephen O'Donnell
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