ARDEER Thistle boss Sean Kenney cut a frustrated figure after his side let their lead slip in a 2-1 derby defeat to Irvine Victoria.

Thistle had led for much of the game after captain Andy McGregor headed home in the 34th minute.

However, after failing to add to their tally, Vics came roaring back and Dylan Boyce scored with five minutes remaining to put the game in the balance.

With both sides searching for a winner, it was James Maxwell of Irvine Victoria who provided the goods in the second minute of added time to complete the turnaround.

Speaking to the club's social media team after the game, Kenney was critical of his side for letting their lead slip late.

He said: “It’s really disappointing. I feel like, based on chances, we should have seen that one out.

“We should have stretched our lead at 1-0, it comes down to a lack of quality in the final third and decision making.

“I think we defended fine for 85 minutes, our shape was fine, they had a lot of the ball but it’s not a game of possession.

“Not doing the right thing at the right moment has cost us, it’s a sore one, anyone should see a game out one up with five minutes to go – to lose that game is a disgrace.”

Kenney says the Stevenston side, who had briefly topped the West of Scotland Football League Third Division after victory last week, will not let the loss get on top of them.

He added: “We didn’t get carried away last week and we’re not going to get carried away the other way this week.

“We’ll lift each other, we’ll bounce back and hopefully we’ll put in a good performance next Saturday.”

Next up for Ardeer is a league match away to Girvan on Saturday, September 7, with kick off at 2pm.

Full match highlights from Ardeer Thistle Vs Irvine Victoria are available via YouTube at youtube.com/watch?v=ZAgVrw7ki1g.