NORTH AYRSHIRE WILD 4 PAISLEY PIRATES 7

For the second time in a week, Paisley Pirates scored seven times as they recorded a comfortable road win against local rivals North Ayrshire Wild, in a match where the final margin of victory could have been wider, but for controversial decisions by the match night official, who twice disallowed goals by the visitors after originally allowing them to stand.

Pirates were up and running straight away and went ahead after less than 90 seconds as Thorp finished off a move with Sarginson and Duncan to put his team ahead. The visitors had to survive a number of penalties which left them shorthanded but they did so without conceding and went to the dressing room nursing a narrow 1-0 advantage.

That lead disappeared as the hosts equalised through player/coach Cowan within two minutes of the restart, but inside 60 seconds Pirates’ player/coach Adam Walker had returned the compliment to restore to restore the visitors’ advantage. Pirates continued to have the bulk of the play and two quick fire goals from Duncan late in the period gave the visitors a comfortable looking 4-1 lead going into the final session.

The hosts again came out looking for a quick goal and got it within two minutes as Parkin netted to bring the difference back to two. Pirates responded in style as first Guy and then Henderson netted to take the score to 6-2, before the moments of controversy as Kenneth, who had been the subject of some heavy challenges all evening, had a goal disallowed by referee Stewart after the official had awarded the marker, before protests by the home side persuaded him to reverse his decision, and within minutes a second Pirates’ goal was washed out after a similar scenario.  Wild, encouraged by their vocal successes, then scored two goals in half a minute through Cowan, with his second, then Fowley, to make the score 6-4 when it might have been 8-2, before Spiers scored an empty net goal in the last minute to round off the scoring, and finally extinguish any thoughts of a fightback by the home side. 

PAISLEY PIRATES   5 KIRKCALDY KESTRELS   6

Pirates produced one of their worst performances of the season in their final league game to go down 6-5 to a shorthanded Kestrels side whom they had already defeated three times earlier in league and cup games..

The visitors took the lead in six minutes through Scott Jamieson in a period where the home side appeared unable to put in a concerted effort, with passes going astray and players seemingly unable to link with each other, and it was no real surprise when the same player doubled his side’s advantage with three minutes of the session remaining. Pirates briefly got back in the game within a minute through McLaughlin but were again two behind as Cochrane beat Meechan to make it 3-1 at the first break.

It got worse for the home side in the middle session as Jamieson completed his hat trick after 26 minutes and while the hosts continued to struggle they did get a goal back through Harju  just before he halfway point to raise some hopes, and when Walker netted a disputed marker after 34 minutes the team briefly found some of the form which had hitherto escaped them. Andreucci scored the equaliser with 90 seconds of the period remaining, leaving the game poised at 4-4 when all seemed lost only 10 minutes earlier.

However, two quick fire goals by that man Jamieson took his team’s total to six, and his personal tally to five, inside 4 minutes of the restart and while a 5th goal for the home side after 49 minutes from Henderson gave them renewed hope, their form once again left them as the visitors comfortably held on for a deserved win

Pirates will play their last home game of the season in the playoffs on Saturday, 28 March (face off 6.30om) and will be desperately hoping that their good form of only a few weeks previously will return by that date.