Keith Knox aiming to sound the last post for Albion Rovers

Stranraer opened the door to Second Division football with their 2-0 win over Albion Rovers on Wednesday night and manager Keith Knox is hoping that his men now walk through it by securing promotion at Coatbridge today, writes Craig P Stewart.

But win or lose, Knox, who has lived in the Wigtownshire town all his life, knows that the locals will not be long in congratulating or commiserating with him.

He said: “I know what this club means to Stranraer people.

“I played for them twice without ever getting too much attention but that changed when I became the manager three years ago. I was a postman for 27 years, so I was always visible but, when I became the manager, people started to freely give their opinions on what went well or otherwise. I had to learn to be diplomatic.”

He hung up his postbag earlier this year and is now looking to give something back to the town he loves through the sport he loves.

Knox added: “I am working with a number of agencies to promote the positive side of football. It involves coaching youngsters and also trying to inspire teenagers towards good qualifications.”

Finishing off the promotion job at Rovers would see Knox achieve local hero status but he said: “We were two up against Queen’s Park [in the semi-final] and got through so some fans have assumed this game will be the same. Football is not that straightforward.”

Rovers boss Paul Martin said: “We had to score twice to defeat Elgin to get here and we did that. We now need to score twice to force extra time so we know what we need to do.”

Rovers will miss the suspended John Gemmell, however Alan Reid returns after illness kept him out of the first meeting.

Stranraer midfielder Ryan Borris will undergo a fitness test ahead of kick off.