cinch Championship
Tue 1 March, 2022. Kick Off: - 19:30
Gayfield Park
Fixture Information:
Ticketing for Thistle fans:
Tickets for our trip to Arbroath are available for Thistle supporters to purchase. Jags fans can purchase their ticket for Tuesday’s match at: https://www.arbroathfc.co.uk/away-tickets/
All tickets for this fixture need to be purchased online in advance by Thistle supporters with no cash turnstiles in operation on matchday.
Due to the previous postponement of this fixture, any tickets purchased for the original date are still valid.
Live stream
Arbroath are streaming Tuesday’s fixture for any supporter who wishes to tune in. The live stream is priced at £13 and is available to purchase at: https://arbroathfc.tv/
Supporters are advised to register and sign up by 6:30pm on Tuesday to get yourself familiar with the website and so you have time to have any problems resolved.
If this is your first time using Arbroath’s PPV platform, you will have to create an account by clicking on “Get my Access” on https://arbroathfc.tv/
Your login will be your email address and then you will asked to create a password and enter in your payment details. The cost is £13
Having successfully created your account you can then click “Watch Live” and then sit back and enjoy the game!
If you have any issues please use the live chat box on the right hand side of the Arbroath FC TV website. Their support staff will help you directly from there and will have you logged in.
Audio Commentary
Our JagZone audio commentary service returns on Tuesday with audio coverage of our cinch Championship match in Arbroath.
Join Michael Max and Christopher Dobie on Tuesday evening as they bring you the full 90 minutes of action. The show gets underway at 7pm.
To listen to the broadcast, simply log in to your Jagzone account, click on the audio commentary tab and press the play button on the player.
Supporters’ Buses:
City Centre Branch:
Pick ups:
Q Club – 15:15
Station Bar – 15:30
For seats call Duncan 07979496154 or e-mail
John Lambie Jordanhill Branch:
Pick ups:
Jordanhill Station – 16:15
Thornwood Bar – 16:20
Prices:
Adults – £18
Concessions – £12
Booking is essential and priority will be given to former members and regulars. Seating will be limited and face-coverings must worn: this follows instructions from the coach company.
Travellers are reminded that a Covid Passport or a negative Lateral Flow Test will be necessary for entry to the ground.
To make a booking phone or e-mail Alistair on 07817612563 or Alternatively phone or e-mail Iain on 07779668357 or
North-West Branch:
Pick ups:
Milngavie Railway Station – 16:15
Esquire House, Anniesland – 16:35
Maryhill Community Central Halls – 16:50
Fares:
Full fare – £17
Concessions – £10.50
Please remember that the wearing of a face covering is mandatory at all times when on the North-West bus and will remain so until government guidelines are changed.
A chock-full March begins for Partick Thistle with a Tuesday night trip to take on league leaders Arbroath at Gayfield Park. The Jags head to Angus off the back of a 0-0 draw with Raith Rovers at Stark’s Park with Arbroath also having drawn 0-0 in their most recent game, against Greenock Morton. Dick Campbell’s Red Lichties have taken all three points in both of the previous two meetings between the sides this season so Thistle will be keen to get one back and boost their title aspirations. Thistle assistant manager Neil Scally spoke to ptfc.co.uk ahead of the contest:
“It’s another big game for us as they all are at this stage of the season. With this one being against the team at the top of the table that makes it even bigger. We want to be pushing towards where they are and getting a result against them would obviously be a massive help in trying to do that.”
Reflecting on Saturday’s draw in Kirkcaldy, Neil admitted that it wasn’t the Jags best performance and that a draw was the fairest result.
“We didn’t start well, to be honest, and they would have been disappointed not to be ahead going into half-time. We made some changes at the break and then we felt that we were much better in the second half, much more in the game and that led to some more openings.
“After half-time we did a better job of holding onto the ball and dealt with their long balls a bit better. Even with that though it was probably a better point for us than it was for them.”
Now looking towards the game against Arbroath, Scally says that having played the Smokies twice already this season the team know what to expect as they travel to Gayfield.
“They’re a very good side and they’ve shown that over the course of the season so far. You don’t get to March at the top of the table through luck so we know the quality of the team we’re up against.
“We haven’t shown our best against them in the two times we’ve played them so we want to make sure we’re on our game going up there this time. They’ll not make it easy for us though, they’ve got a really good mix of physicality and talent which makes them a really difficult team to beat especially at home.”
As well as a chance to get three more points on the board, the game also represents an opportunity to get one over on one of the Jags’ top five rivals and Scally says that would be a boost for the team.
“Going away from home to one of the toughest grounds in the league and getting a victory would be a huge boost for everyone of course. We know it’s going to be one of the most difficult games of the season but if we can get a win then that would set us up brilliantly for the other six games we have in March.
“We don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves though. We’re taking it one game at a time and this one is a tricky one. We believe in ourselves though and will be going to Gayfield looking to take all three points.”
To finish, Neil gave us the latest team news ahead of our trip to Angus.
“There aren’t any changes to report at the moment. Kevin Holt and Scott Tiffoney obviously both missed the Raith game and both of them could make it for this game. They’re two important players for us so of course we want them available but we can’t afford to rush them back either.”
Exclusive video interviews with Jamie Sneddon and Thistle assistant manager Neil Scally will be available for JagZone subscribers to watch today – log in to view.
JagZone subscribers will be able to tune in to live audio commentary for our clash with Arbroath, starting at 7pm – click here to tune in.
Arbroath will be providing a pay-per-view option, priced at £13, for any supporter who wishes to watch a livestream of the match – click here for more info.
We’ll have extended highlights and a full game replay of the fixture on JagZone following the game.
Article Copyright © 2022. Permission to use quotations from this article online is only granted subject to appropriate source credit and hyperlink to ptfc.co.uk.
After a scoreless stalemate at Stark’s Park against Raith Rovers on Saturday, Partick Thistle made the trip to Angus to take on Arbroath in a rearranged cinch Championship clash.
The Jags were looking to gain some ground on the table-topping Smokies who had beaten Thistle twice already this season.
Ian McCall made five changes to the side which drew in Kirkcaldy at the weekend with Richard Foster, Stephen Hendrie, Robbie Crawford, Alex Jakubiak and Kyle McAllister moved to the bench to be replaced by Ciaran McKenna, Kevin Holt, Kyle Turner, Brian Graham and Scott Tiffoney.
A slow start to the game set the Jags back against Raith so the Maryhill men would have been hoping for a better opening this time round, however, they got the exact opposite. Five minutes into the game Arbroath were ahead and it was left-back Colin Hamilton who got the goal. A throw-in from the left touchline was worked towards the Thistle box before the ball deflected off Ross Docherty into Hamilton’s path. The number three steadied himself and slotted home confidently to give the hosts an early advantage.
Things then went from bad to worse for Thistle as Scott Tiffoney was forced off injured after ten minutes with Robbie Crawford taking the winger’s place.
Arbroath continued to control the first half without creating too much until the 28th minute when Jamie Sneddon was called into action for the first time of the evening. Bobby Linn stepped up to take a free-kick from 25 yards out and the Lichties legend struck it brilliantly, sending it towards the top corner. Sneddon dashed across his goal-line and was able to touch it onto the outside of the post with the ball bouncing out for a corner.
The visitors very slowly started building their way into the game as the first half came to a close and they had their best moment of the opening period with three minutes to go until the break. A Kyle Turner corner was floated into the Arbroath penalty area and home ‘keeper Derek Gaston completely missed the ball. It ricocheted back past a prone Gaston before Lewis Mayo latched onto it. He tried a shot on the spin but it was blocked and the danger was cleared.
Thistle made changes two and three of the game at half-time as Richard Foster and Juan Alegria were introduced to the contest, the latter of whom was making his Jags debut a day after signing on loan from Rangers.
The Colombian almost made an instant impact too as he went lose two minutes after coming on. Cammy Smith wriggled away from two defenders just inside the Arbroath box and managed to dig out a cross to the near post where Alegria was waiting. The 19-year-old threw himself at the delivery but could only send his header over the bar from relatively close range.
Shortly thereafter Arbroath were back on the attack and could have been in front again. A corner which was initially cleared by the away side came back at them in a flash. A ball into the box rebounded into the path of Bobby Linn who rifled a shot goalwards, but Jamie Sneddon was on hand once again to foil the wideman’s efforts.
Then Thistle struck their equaliser through an unlikely source. The Jags were working the ball well in the opposition half before it eventually made its way to Ciaran McKenna on the right side. The number 16 took a touch, took a look at the goal and then drilled a low shot across goal past Derek Gaston for his first Thistle goal.
Five minutes later the Jags could have been ahead. A smart free-kick from Stuart Bannigan found the run of Brian Graham in the Arbroath box as the home side were caught sleeping, however, the frontman’s left-footed shot snuck just past the far post.
Neither side was settling for the point with half-chances for both sides as the clock ticked down. Probably the best chance of the closing stages fell to Kevin Holt as the defender almost marked his return from injury with an 86th minute winner. Brian Graham lifted a terrific ball over the Arbroath defence for substitute Connor Murray to sprint onto and the number 17 cut onto his left side before sliding a lovely pass across to the onrushing Holt. The former Dundee man tried to squeeze a shot past Derek Gaston into the bottom left-hand corner but fired his shot just wide of the goal.
With that the game ended level with each team earning a point from this game in hand. The Red Lichties now sit a point clear of Kilmarnock at the Championship summit while Thistle move into the top four on goal difference at the expense of Inverness with a couple of games in hand still to play.
The management team’s written previews and reactions are presented by The Jags Trust. You can keep up to date with the latest from The Jags Trust by visiting their website, www.jagstrust.com.
It was another point on the board for Partick Thistle as they climbed into fourth place with a 1-1 draw against Arbroath at Gayfield Park. The Jags trailed early through a Colin Hamilton goal and found themselves under a lot of pressure from the Red Lichties during the first half, however, after getting to half-time with no further damage done they produced a much-improved second half performance. Ciaran McKenna popped up with his first goal for the club to restore parity before the Maryhill men pushed for a winner which they couldn’t quite find despite having the better of the closing stages. Thistle boss Ian McCall spoke to ptfc.co.uk after full-time:
“It’s a point that we’re happy with when we consider the entirety of the game because they started the game much better than us. We lose that early goal and suddenly they have their tails up and are making it very difficult for us to work our way up the pitch.
“The important thing was that we stuck to it and didn’t fall further behind. That then meant we could change things at half-time and I think you saw a big improvement after that albeit I do think we were growing into it at the end of the first half.”
Discussing the opening goal further, McCall felt his team could have done better with it although there was an unfortunate bounce in the build-up.
“It’s a bit unlucky from our point of view because the ball bounces back off Doc into their boy’s path. To be fair, it’s a really good finish but that was a bit frustrating. Saying that, we could have done a couple of things better before it comes to that but when you concede that early, you have to regroup and in fairness to the guys, they managed to do that.”
The gaffer made two changes at half-time with Juan Alegria and Richard Foster coming on which he had a positive effect on the pattern of play.
“As I said, I thought we were growing into it towards the end of the first half but we still felt we needed to change some things. We brought Richard and Juan on and changed the shape as well and it definitely put us in a better position.
“We got the midfielders involved in the game a lot more and having Juan up front alongside Brian Graham gave them something a but extra to think about and it just freed up some more space.”
Towards the end of the game Thistle had the momentum and Ian felt the team could have taken all three points on that basis.
“We were much more dangerous overall in the second half and we had a good number of chances. The best one was probably Kevin Holt’s at 1-1. Connor Murray does really well to set him up and he just gets the angle wrong on the finish but going behind so early on way from home at the league leaders, we would have bitten your hand off for a draw at that point so we can’t be too disappointed.
“The draw keeps us in the fight. Losing would have made it really difficult for us but getting a draw just keeps us in a decent position. Now we’ve got a couple of big home games to contend with and if we can get positive results from those then we’ll put some real pressure on the teams at the top.”
Finally, McCall paid tribute to the Thistle fans who made the long journey to Angus on a Tuesday night to back the team.
“The support was fantastic tonight. It’s a tough journey to make in midweek but it was great to see them turn out in good numbers. Even when we were one down they were singing and willing us on so they deserve a massive well done for that.”
Further reaction from Thistle manager Ian McCall and Lewis Mayo will be available to watch on JagZone tonight – log in to view.
We’ll have extended highlights and a full game replay of the fixture on JagZone later tonight.
Article Copyright © 2022. Permission to use quotations from this article online is only granted subject to appropriate source credit and hyperlink to ptfc.co.uk.
Tue 1 March, 2022
cinch Championship 
Gayfield Park
A much improved second half display from Thistle is enough for them to return to Glasgow with a point in a game that could have gone either way in the closing stages.
Thistle are pushed back.
Thistle free kick on the halfway line. Time for one last chance?
Holt takes charge and heads the corner clear.
Sneddon has to touch the ball over his crossbar.
Bannigan's free kick is headed clear.
Crawford is fouled near the touchline and Thistle will have a chance to get the ball into the box.
Thistle are close to snatching the lead as they break from the Arbroath corner. Murray to Crawford but he can't hit target.
Crowd 1,648 with 299 travelling Thistle fans.
Sneddon is able to watch a Donnelly header go wide but the Arbroath player has a little too much space inside the box for his header.
We're into the last 10 minutes here at Gayfield. Neither side are settling for a point that is clear.
Bannigan again gets the ball back after his corner is cleared. This time he cuts inside to the corner of the box for a shot that is an easy save for Gaston.
It's a Thistle corner after an Arbroath player nearly turns the ball into his own net.
Bannigan's corner is cleared but picked up by Crawford who gives it back to Bannigan and this time his cross finds Graham but his header is marginally too high.
Bannigan's low free kick finds Graham inside the box and his shot crawls wide of the far post as Thistle are close to going in front.
The scores are tied as McKenna shoots across Gaston from the right hand corner of the box and finds the far corner of the net for his first ever Partick Thistle goal.
Docherty's shot is going well wide until Crawford directs it towards goal but a defender clears.
Little's header clears Sneddon's crossbar.
Although the corner is initially cleared Arbroath remain on the attack and it takes an excellent stop from Sneddon to deny Jack Hamilton.
Smith crosses from the right and Alegria's header goes over the bar as Thistle open the half in a positive fashion.
The travelling support are not happy with what they have seen in the first 45 minutes.
Arbroath lead by a solitary Colin Hamilton goal scored just after 5 minutes and, aside from the last 5 minutes of the half when Thistle started to offer some positive response, they have remained in control of the match since then.
Massive improvement needed for Thistle who lost Scott Tiffoney to injury inside the game's first 10 minutes.
Thistle, we hear, are set to make two changes at the break.
Into additional time at the end of the first half. Shouldn't be too much of that.
Gaston comes for a Turner free kick but doesn't collect. The ball falls to Mayo whose shot is blocked by a defender.
Graham back defending the corner tries to launch a quick counter attack but the move breaks down near the half way line.
McKenna makes a complete mess of the free kick and it goes high into the night sky and over Sneddon's crossbar.
Wighton wins Arbroath a free kick at the left hand corner of the Thistle box.
It's marginally more promising for Thistle and Crawford finds space for a shot near the edge of the box but it cannons off Graham who had strayed offside anyway.
Graham has a shot for Thistle but the flag was already up for offside against the isolated and frustrated looking striker.
Thistle can't clear the corner and O'Brien hooks the ball towards goal but it drops wide of everyone and out for a goal kick. Thistle are still in this case but only just.
The combination of post and Sneddon prevents Linn's free kick from finding the net.
Akinola is penalised for a challenge close to the edge of the Thistle box.
Docherty tries to find Graham with a ball over the top but Little is able to flick it back to Gaston.
Thistle are making next to no impression on a game that continues to be dominated by the home side. Brian Graham is looking very isolated up front on his own,
Thistle are set to make an early change.
Sneddon makes a clean catch from the corner.
It's a nightmare start for Thistle and it's far too easy as Colin Hamilton advances on Sneddon and his low shot leaves Sneddon with no chance.
Linn drills a low cross into the box that Thistle are pressed to clear.
First effort on goal comes from Arbroath's McKenna but the ball goes high and wide of goal.
Arbroath get the game underway. Thistle are defending the Pleasureland End in the first half.