Ayr United 1 - 0 Partick Thistle: Bowey blast lifts battling Ayr out of bottom two

Published on Wednesday 10 March 2010 22:23

AYR UNITED leapfrogged Morton in the battle to avoid the relegation play-off place after a special first-half goal from veteran Steve Bowey was enough to see off promotion-chasing Partick Thistle.

To add to the visitors' woes, they had Jackie McNamara carried off midway through the second half.

The hosts, determined to extend their three-game unbeaten run, started well, and in the opening quarter Jonny Tuffey was forced into two fine saves from Tam McManus.

But, gradually, Thistle got their passing going and in the central 15 minutes of the half they had Ayr on the back foot. During this spell Craig Samson in the Ayr goal showed that anything Tuffey could do, so also could he - pushing a David Rowson shot behind for a corner in 28 minutes, then, a minute later, tipping over a Liam Buchanan shot.

Ayr rode the storm, then broke out spectacularly in 35 minutes. A rapid counter-attack ended with McManus's delightful reverse ball, which Bowey rattled home via the underside of the crossbar for his first United goal.

Thistle came out fired up after the interval and in the opening three minutes of the second half, Samson twice came to Ayr's rescue with excellent saves from Simon Donnelly and Chris Erskine.

For a time the United penalty area was more-crowded than Ayr's Low Green on Glasgow Fair Monday, but the home defence held firm and there was a timely reminder of the threat they carried on the counter in 63 minutes, when a thrust down the left saw young Daniel Lafferty, the left back on loan from Celtic, burst through to rattle Tuffey's right hand post.

Two minutes later, McNamara was stretchered off and his departure seemed to end Thistle's resolution to salvage the game.

Mark Corcoran did shoot over from three yards in injury time, just a minute after Ayr's Danny McKay had missed an open goal from the half-way line as Tuffey sprinted back from a sortie upfield for a Thistle corner.

Ayr Utd: Samson, Mitchell, Campbell, Andrew Aitken, Lafferty, Keenan, Bowey, McGowan, Borris (Kenneth Connolly 79), McManus (Mendes 88), McKay. Subs Not Used: Grindlay, Woodburn, Gibson.

Partick Thistle: Tuffey, Paton, Robertson, Archibald, Conroy, Cairney (Lovell 70), McNamara (McKeown 65), Rowson, Erskine (Corcoran 57), Buchanan, Donnelly. Subs Not Used: Halliwell, Grehan.

Referee: W Collum Attendance: 1,505