Clyde pay the penalty

The Bully Wee went down 4-3 on penalties to Berwick Rangers, after an entertaining 120 minutes of action left the tie deadlocked at two-all.

It was the Cumbernauld club’s first game at Broadwood since April and marked the start of the new season.

Duffy said: “I was absolutely delighted by the majority of the performance. It was a difficult start for us, losing two goals in the opening ten minutes.

“But the boys didn’t buckle and that was very important. They kept at it and it was a great comeback at 2-2.

“On the whole we deserved it and were a bit unlucky not to take any more chances. That emphasises how well the boys done considering we were two-nil down.

“We could’ve felt sorry for ourselves and given up but there was no hint of that.”

With the mercury soaring on Saturday, Clyde may have hoped for a less intense start to the competitive calendar, but the Broadwood boss hopes it will stand them in good stead.

“It was probably the hottest day of the year,” continued Duffy. “That, along with the game going to extra-time, is not the ideal scenario, but it’ll benefit the players in the long run.

“They kept going, despite the conditions - that’s a testament to their commitment.”

Duffy insists that he will not prioritise the league over other competitions this year.

He said: “We will always play the best team possible. I don’t think we are experienced enough to win the title.

“People will think that’s negative, but it’s not, it’s just being realistic.

“Nine of our 16 players are 21 or under, it takes time. I think it’s being realistic to say our objective is to improve as a team.”

On Saturday, Clyde travel to Glebe Park for a tough tie against second division Brechin City in the first round of the Scottish Communities League Cup.

From there, things don’t get any easier as the first two league games of the season see Peterhead visit Broadwood before Clyde make the trip to face Paul Hartley’s Alloa.

Duffy added: “The Brechin tie will be extremely difficult.

“They’ve been in the play-off final the last two years, they’re basically two levels above us.

“It’ll be a difficult place to go but if we can get close to our performance on Saturday, we’ll make it a good tie.

“As for the league, we couldn’t have asked for a tougher start. Peterhead and Alloa are the bookies’ favourites for this year.

“There’s a lot of experience in both of those teams but I know my players are capable of competing.”