ANDY GRAHAM’S winning penalty may have been the truly decisive act in sending Ayr United into the Ladbrokes Championship at the expense of Stranraer, but he was keen to make sure goalkeeper Greg Fleming was recognised as the hero of the hour.
After a goalless 120 minutes, it came down to penalty-kicks and Graham made the difference when sending Cameron Belford the wrong way and sparking a post-match pitch invasion at Somerset Park.
However, when the dust had settled, he couldn’t speak any higher of his team-mate Fleming after watching him produce three saves in the shoot-out.
“What he did was incredible,” said Graham. “He won the shoot-out for us and he made three great saves to get us in this position. He deserves it.”
“Greg takes all the credit for this.”
Fleming was the player the supporters wanted selfies with after the final whistle. However, the keeper credited the Ayr United goalkeeping coach, Robert Glen, for providing the inside information that laid the foundations for promotion.
“Thankfully, Robert showed where they would put their penalties,” he said.
“I didn’t know about the last one from David Barron, right enough, but it was a massive team effort in a game that wasn’t the best.
“All people will remember, though, is that we went up.”
Ian McCall, the Ayr United manager, also paid tribute to his keeper afterwards.
“Greg’s been tremendous all season and, in the last three months, he’s been different class,” he said.
“We always fancied ourselves on penalties because of the goalie.
“I wanted to bring the roar back here and we had it today.”
There is one final wish which Ayr United supporters have for the season, though. It involves, of all clubs, Kilmarnock.
Should they lose to Falkirk in the final of the Premiership play-off, the Ayrshire derby will be reintroduced to the calendar next season. With the possibility of Dundee United, Hibernian and St Mirren also making their way to Somerset Park next season, it looks sure to be a fascinating second tier and a stern test for McCall and his men.
This game being decided by penalty kicks is reflective of how stoic and stubborn the two teams were. It was not a classic by any stretch of the imagination and it has to be said that both sides lacked a real cutting edge.
Andrew Stirling’s cut inside from the left and shot must have stung Fleming’s palms as it flew towards him in the early stages. Meanwhile, Jordan Preston, the on-loan Blackburn Rovers striker, looked dangerous for the home side in the early stages and forced Belford into a save at his back post with a great effort.
Hope and positivity slowly ebbed away as the game progressed in favour of a more cautionary approach as each side worked and battled to their last.
Substitute Jamie Longworth nearly nicked it for Stranraer deep in extra-time when Willie Gibson's free-kick found the striker at the back post. However, he flashed his header across goal and wide.
There was a real sense of inevitability as referee Andrew Dallas blew his whistle to send the game into penalties, where Fleming shone, denying Paul Cairney, Longworth and Barron to send the 4,500-plus support into raptures.
Beaten Stranraer boss Brian Reid, a former Ayr United player, reckons the tie turned on his opponents’ late equaliser in Wednesday’s first leg.
Ross Docherty scored five minutes into stoppage in that meeting at Stair Park to cancel out an opening goal from Mark McGuigan and put United in the box seat.
“I congratulate Ayr on the promotion, but it’s a bitter one for us to take,” conceded Reid.
“The players had done well to get to this point, but Docherty’s goal late in injury time on Wednesday has been the difference. We’ve come up short in the end.”
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