Will Sewell and Dan Higgins were the only players to be missing for Swifty as we launched our 2022-23 season.  Conor Brennan, Craig Bryson and Matty Yates all made their competitive debuts for The Warriors, with Jay Cantley, Scott Walker and Niyah Joseph making their debuts on the bench.

The Warriors started strong and threatened the away goal several times in the first few minutes. There was lots of good build up play in the last third, but struggled to get any golden chances.

15 minutes into the match and there’s not been much between the sides. Stenhousemuir have enjoyed some good possession and Partick Thistle have been content to stand up to any attacks. Partick Thistle did push forward at times, but the Stenhousemuir defence has been up to the challenge so far.

The first proper chance of the match came in the 19th minute. Some good play on the edge of the box eventually saw the ball dropped to Cammy Smith inside the box, but his shot was dragged wide for a goal kick.

Almost 25 minutes played and the ref calls for a water break.

Starlight after the restart, Sean Crighton was almost caught out with the a long ball. Brian Graham picked up the ball and forced a good clearance by Brennan with Adam Corbett clearing for the corner.

Partick Thistle have been the stronger side since the water break, but are still struggling to break down the home defence.

HALF TIME: STENHOUSEMUIR 0-0 PARTICK THISTLE

Half time change for home side as Scott Walker replaces Adam Corbett at right back.

Wasn’t long into the 2nd half before the first bit of action. The visitors were claiming that Scott Walker handled in the box, but the ref waived play on.

The Jags have definitely started the stronger side in the second half with some good chances, but still struggle to break the home defence.

GOAL: Eventually, it didn’t take the visitors long to break the deadlock. Kyle Turner picked up a knock down on the edge of the box and despite having Sean and Nicky to contend with, he slotted home passed Conor Brennan. STENHOUSEMUIR 0-1 PARTICK THISTLE [Turner 53 minutes]

Swifty decided to make his second change of the game with Craig Bryson’s debut coming to an end as he’s replaced by Euan O’Reilly.

The goal has certainly given Partick Thistle a boost as they begin to take control of the game.

GOAL: Some pressure for The Warriors pays off. Mikey Anderson floated in a ball to the back post and Nicky Jamieson found it with a bullet header at the back post that was somehow saved by Sneddon but Matty Yates was on hand to fire home his first goal for The Warriors and pulls the home side level. STENHOUSEMUIR 1-1 PARTICK THISTLE [Yates 64 minutes]

The visitors almost took the league again, but a good save by Brennan kept the scores level.

Another water break at the 70 minute park to help the players through the heat.

GOAL: Just as The Warriors were starting to settle back into the game, Partick Thistle broke forward and Brian Graham got on the end of a well worked cross to put the visitors back in the lead. STENHOUSEMUIR 1-2 PARTICK THISTLE [Graham 75 minutes]

RED CARD: Not a player, but Swifty was shown a red card for snatching the ball from a Partick Thistle player. Not sure what’s happened, but looks like a strange decision from the referee that even has the Partick Thistle dugout a bit confused.

Mikey Miller and Nat Wedderburn are replaced by Adam Brown and Ross Forbes as Stenhousemuir look to grab a second equaliser.

The Warriors did have a good chance on 76 minutes with Mikey Anderson scuffing a shot on the edge of the box. Tam looked to get on the end of it, but was flagged for offside.

Final change for The Warriors with les than 5 minutes to play with Niyah Joseph coming on for Matty Yates.

The visitors were happy to sit back and welcome the pressure. They even created a late chance when they struck the crossbar. In the end, The Jags were able to hold on for the rest of the game and saw out a repeat of last season’s 2-1 win.

FULL TIME: STENHOUSEMUIR 1-2 PARTICK THISTLE 

It was always going to be a tough test for The Warriors, but the lads played well in spells and managed to stifle many of The Jags’ attacks. We now look ahead to Saturday where we welcome Fraserburgh to Ochilview in our next Group B match.

Match attendance: 926

PPV audience: 119