Sean McIntosh feels his side can be “proud” of how they competed after going down to Premiership side Ross County.
The Blues started their new season with a 3-1 defeat to the top flight club and now face the side that lost out to them in the top flight play-off, Raith Rovers.
The Kirkcaldy club opened their campaign with a 3-0 win at Stirling Albion and McIntosh and his team-mates know they will be very much underdogs heading to Stark’s Park on Tuesday night (7.45pm kickoff).
The full-back said: “It is another tough game and away from home.
“We just need to take the positives from the Ross County game and, hopefully, put in a good performance on Tuesday.
“Then, we will see what happens.”
The Staggies would run out 3-1 winners, thanks to a double from Jordan White and an Eamonn Brophy header.
However, Stranraer gave a decent account of themselves with Deryn Lang scoring the pick of the goals.
McIntosh said: “It was a tough game and they are tough opposition.
“I think we gave ourselves a good account.
“The first half, we were maybe a wee bit off it but in the second half we were definitely a lot better.
“We said to keep ourselves in the game for as long as we could and we would have a right good go with 20 minutes to go.
“We were just unfortunate to concede right after we scored.
“Nonetheless, there were a lot of positives to take.”
Scott Agnew has been busy reshaping his squad over the close season after Stranraer’s nerve-jangling win over East Kilbride maintained the club’s SPFL status.
Goalkeeper Harry Broun made his debut while Tomas Brindley, Kirk McKnight, Mark Russell and Elliot Dunlop pulled on a Stranraer shirt for the first time and Adam Cummins returned to the club.
McIntosh was hopeful the squad was coming together and could show an improvement on last term.
He said: “It is always good to get a few new faces in.
“It takes some of the boys a bit of time to get used to each other.
“It is a really good group and I think there are a lot of positive signs from the pre-season games, the Ross County game and hopefully that continues.”
Previous meeting
Stranraer’s penultimate home match before the coronavirus pandemic shut down football came against Raith Rovers.
The visitors had enjoyed most of the ball and deservedly took the lead in the first half. Frontman John Baird raced onto a high ball, rounded Max Currie and his low shot crept in despite the efforts of the retreating home defence.
Stranraer were improved after the break and saw an inswinging corner cross the line, only to be ruled out by the referee.
The equaliser came from the penalty spot when Jordan Allan was brought down and Ryan Stevenson stepped up to score.
Stranraer: Currie, Robertson, Allan, Cummins, Pignatiello, Hamill, McManus, Ryan Thomson, Stevenson, Johnstone (Hilton 75), Stirling.
Not used: McIntyre, Phillips, Ross and Burgess.
Raith Rovers: Robbie Thomson, MacDonald, Davidson, Benedictus, Miller, Hendry, Matthews, Tait (Spencer 72), MacLean, Bowie (Armstrong 67), Baird (Dingwall 78).
Not used: McKay, Watson, Anderson and Munro.
Last five meetings
- Stranraer 1 Raith Rovers 1 (Stevenson (Pen); Baird) at Stair Park on February 8, 2020
- Raith Rovers 3 Stranraer 1 (Gullan x2 and Baird; Stewart) at Starks Park on November 9, 2019
- Stranraer 3 Raith Rovers 2 (McManus, Dangana and Elliott; Miller and Spencer) at Stair Park on August 17, 2019
- Raith Rovers 2 Stranraer 3 (McKay and Barjonas; Turner, Cameron and Victoria) at Starks Park on April 13, 2019
- Stranraer 2 Raith Rovers 2 (Turner and Victoria; McGuffie and Nisbet (Pen)) at Stair Park on March 2, 2019
Last five games
Stranraer
- LOSS v Ross County (H): 1-3 (Lang)
- WIN v East Kilbride (H): 3-1 (Gallagher, Ross and Gilmartin)
- DRAW v East Kilbride (A): 2-2 (McIntosh and Ross)
- LOSS v Forfar Athletic (A): 0-2
- DRAW v Dumbarton (H): 0-0
Raith Rovers
- WIN v Stirling Albion (A): 0-3 (Connolly x3)
- LOSS v Ross County (A): 4-0
- LOSS v Ross County (H): 1-2 (Stanton)
- LOSS v Partick Thistle (H): 1-2 (Matthews)
- WIN v Partick Thistle (A): 2-1 (Brown and Vaughan)
Last time out
Stranraer
Lineup v Ross County: Broun, McIntosh, Cummins, Ross, Brindley, Gallagher, McKnight (Ecrepont 71), Russell (McQueen 71), Grant (Lang 71), Dunlop (Orr 59), Edgar (Hawkshaw 59).
Not used: Hughes, Adam and Pazikas.
Raith Rovers
Lineup v Stirling Albion: Dabrowski, Freeman (Matthews 70), Fordyce, Murray, Stevenson, Connolly (Mullin 80), Stanton (Montagu 80), Brown, Byrne, Easton (Gibson 85), Smith (Hamilton 79).
Not used: Hannah, Nicholson and McNeil.
Stranraer
Arrivals
Mo Adam (Gala Fairydean Rovers), Tomas Brindlay (Forfar Athletic), Harry Broun (Dumbarton), Adam Cummins (Stirling Albion), Kirk McKnight (Broomhill), Mark Russell (Portadown), Elliot Dunlop (Airdrieonians, loan) and Jacob Pazikas (Rangers, loan)
Departures
Ben Armour (Peterhead), Andy Downie (Creetown), Kyle Fleming (Annan Athletic), Kyle Girvan (Elgin City), Josh Walker (Queen of the South), Lewis Budinauckas (Rangers, end of loan), Aidan Gilmartin (St Mirren, end of loan), Murray Miller (Stirling Albion, end of loan), Chris Johnston, George O’Connor and Cammy Williamson.
Raith Rovers
Arrivals
Shaun Byrne (Dundee), Callum Fordyce (Airdrieonians), Kieran Freeman (St Patrick’s Athletic), Lewis Gibson (Queen of the South), Paul Hanlon (Hibernian), Kai Montagu (East Kilbride) and Lewis Stevenson (Hibernian).
Departures
Aaron Arnott (Bonnyrigg Rose), Dylan Corr (Greenock Morton), Scott McGill (Dundalk), Ross Millen (Morecambe), Ethan Ross (Falkirk), Lee Ashcroft (Dundee, end of loan), James Brown (St Johnstone, end of loan), Zak Rudden (Dundee, end of loan), Kyle Turner (Ross County, end of loan), Robbie Thomson (retired), Adam Masson and Keith Watson.
Five facts
1. Stair Park should be familiar to at least two of the Raith Rovers squad. Lewis Gibson is the son of former Stranraer favourite Willie Gibson and Kai Montagu was part of the East Kilbride squad who visited at the end of last season.
2. Former Stirling Albion, Ayr United and Stranraer defender Paul Watson celebrates his 56th birthday on Tuesday. He would feature more than 80 times for the Blues at the end of the 1990s before moving on to Maryhill.
3. It is almost 20 years since Stranraer and Raith Rovers faced each other in a cup game. That came in August 2004 when the Blues won 2-1 after a goalless first half. Lee Sharp had Stranraer in front for mere seconds before Paquito equalised for the visitors. However, David Turnbull’s goal on 71 minutes proved decisive.
4. Stranraer boss Scott Agnew and Raith manager Ian Murray know each other well having worked together at Airdrie and Raith Rovers.
5. Player/assistant manager Scott Robertson scored for Stranraer at Starks Park… but it was not against Raith Rovers. The Blues faced Kelty Hearts in Kirkcaldy on January 9, 2021. The ‘home’ side raced into a 2-0 half time lead thanks to goals from Nathan Austin and Kallum Higginbotham. Stranraer fought back after the break with Tom Orr and Robertson levelling things before Ruari Paton’s stoppage time penalty won it for Stranraer.
Admission
Stranraer fans will be housed in section ME of the Turnbull Hutton Stand, which is the corner stand adjacent to Pratt Street, as seen in the illustration above.
Tickets can be purchased from Raith Rovers via the following Fanbase link:
Pricing is as follows:
- Adult – £14
- Over 65s and Under 21s – £10
- Under 16s – £5
Car parking around the ground is limited, so it’s best to arrive early to find a spot.
Coverage
Live matchday updates on X (formerly Twitter) will once again be limited due to volunteer availability, with half time and full time updates only.
The manager’s interview will be available on YouTube following the match, and Club 1870 subscribers can watch the goals by the morning.
Due to the late kickoff, our usual extended highlights will follow later on Wednesday, with full match footage available via Club 1870 on Wednesday evening.
Photos: Bill McCandlish
