Ian McCall hails squad depth as Partick Thistle hit top spot in Group B after 2-0 Premier Sports Cup win over Fraserburgh

Partick Thistle moved into pole position at the top of Group B after running out convincing 2-0 winners over Highland League champions Fraserburgh in the Premier Sports Cup.

Bryan Hay’s own goal and Brian Graham’s driven effort in the late evening sunshine at Firhill ensured the Jags leapfrogged Kilmarnock in the table ahead of the final round of fixtures this weekend.

However, manager Ian McCall felt his side should’ve been more clinical given the number of chances passed up and their territorial superiority against a side four tiers below them.

He admitted: “We should’ve scored more goals. I felt we were too open at times but we had two or three really good chances in the first-half and in the second half we had three or four.

“I was a bit gutted one or two of the new boys didn’t get their first goals for the club but credit to Fraserburgh, they dug in and kept their shape really well.

“It’s a clean sheet. We did okay but we know we can play a lot better. It was a challenging night to play football, when you’re running about in that heat, it’s quite hard.

“I thought the subs did really well when they came on and there was lots to be pleased about. We’ve given ourselves an opportunity to top the group now and that would be a good achievement.

“The squad depth is better than it was last season, we’ve got Scott Tiffoney to come back and we still hope to get another two bodies in the door.”

Thistle were eyeing eight points from a possible nine as they looked to build on their impressive start to the campaign, while Fraserburgh arrived in Glasgow’s West End without a win from their previous three group games.

In the first ever meeting between the clubs, the Broch gave a good account of themselves but struggled to pose much of an attacking threat against their Championship opponents.

The visitors started brightly with Lewis Duncan finding space on the left-hand side and the former Aberdeen youth picked out Aidan Combe unmarked in the box but his tame effort was deflected into the hands of Jamie Sneddon.

Moments later, at the opposite end, Cammy Smith forced Joe Barbour into an acrobatic save with a strike from 20 yards.

Following a lively start to the contest, the home side began to assert their dominance with Kyle Turner curling an effort from the edge of the box narrowly wide of the target.

Fraserburgh began to drop deeper into their own half and they fell behind on 32 minutes when Jack McMillan’s low cross from the right was turned into his own net by centre-back Bryan Hay.

The North-East outfit continued to soak up plenty of pressure but they almost found themselves on level terms five minutes before the interval.

Kieran Simpson’s well-weighted delivery was met by Combe in the penalty area but the winger was unable to prevent his header from sailing over the crossbar.

Before the half drew to a close, Thistle should’ve doubled their lead. Brian Graham evaded the offside trap to slip in Cole McKinnon but the Rangers loanee saw his shot blocked by Barbour, who was quick off his line.

Smith them found himself clean through on goal, but Barbour came to Fraserburgh’s rescue once more, producing a crucial fingertip save to keep the score at 1-0.

It took Thistle until just after the hour mark to put the game to bed. Kevin Holt’s cross from the left reached Graham inside the six-yard box and the veteran striker took a neat touch before rifling the ball low past the helpless Barbour.

Barbour’s heroics between the sticks continued as the match wore on, denying substitute Tony Weston from close range after latching onto Aidan Fitzpatrick’s defence-splitting pass.

Fraserburgh were sloppy in possession on several occasions, with talisman Scott Barbour unable to carve out a clear sight at goal.

However, they acquitted themselves well against a side that will be gunning for promotion to the top-flight of Scottish football this season.

Thistle now entertain Montrose in their final group stage match knowing a victory is required to advance to the quarter finals.

Despite finishing bottom of the group, Fraserburgh assistant manager James Duthie felt it has been a worthwhile experience for the players as they turn their focus on to their Highland League title defence, which begins on Saturday.

He said: “It was really tough up against a really good side. It’s a long journey on a Tuesday night, it was a hot night, we didn’t have the ball much and we were maybe five players short with injuries.

“But in terms of effort I couldn’t fault them. They ran a lot, they hased a lot and kept a decent enough shape. Our quality in possession was poor because we were tired and we can do better in that area.

“It’s been a good experience playing in this cup and we’ll take a lot from it in terms of what we need to do to get better. I’d much rather be tested in these games than play meaningless friendlies and it’s been a brilliant learning experience.”

Partick Thistle: Sneddon, McMillan, Milne, Holt, Turner (Lyon; 76), Graham (Dowds; 64), Lawless (Weston; 64), Smith (Fitzpatrick; 64), McKinnon, Muirhead (Akinola; 45), Docherty

Unused: Mitchell (GK), Brownlie, Bannigan, Stanway

Fraserburgh: J. Barbour, Hay, Simpson, Young, Duncan (S. Barbour; 52), West (Grant; 82), Combe (Sutherland; 82), Watt (Guild; 71), Butcher (MacLellan; 71), Sargent, Aitken

Unused: Flinn (GK), Inglis

Referee: Scott Lambie

Attendance: 1,344 (41 away)

GlasgowWorld Man of the Match: Joe Barbour (Fraserburgh)