15th Jul 2017 Livingston 1 Partick Thistle 1 (League Cup Group H - game 1)

matches:2017-18: ← 01game 0203 →

	David Hopkin	Alan Archibald	40y, 0m, 2d

		Tomáš Černý; Kris Doolan; Chris Erskine
		Ryan Scully; Kevin Nisbet; Neil McLaughlin

Keaghan Jacobs (1-1, 46 mins)		Chris Erskine (1-0, 14 mins)
none (1-1, 46 mins)		none (1-0, 14 mins)
Dylan Mackin		Danny Devine

Matthew Knox (Josh Mullin, 61 mins); Dale Carrick (Jackson Longridge, 68 mins); Raffaele De Vita (Dylan Mackin, 77 mins)		Chris Erskine (Kevin Nisbet, 73 mins)

	Neil Alexander	Tomáš Černý	32y, 3m, 5d
	Alan Lithgow	Christie Elliott	26y, 1m, 19d
	Shaun Byrne	James Penrice	18y, 6m, 23d
	Scott Pittman	Danny Devine	24y, 10m, 8d
	future Jag Danny Mullen	Adam Barton	26y, 6m, 8d
	Keaghan Jacobs	Stuart Bannigan	24y, 9m, 28d
	Matthew Knox	Blair Spittal	21y, 6m, 26d
	Dale Carrick	Ryan Edwards	23y, 7m, 28d
	future Jag Raffaele De Vita	Kris Doolan	30y, 7m, 4d
	Craig Halkett	Chris Erskine	30y, 5m, 7d
	former Jag Declan Gallagher	Steven Lawless	26y, 3m, 3d

			25y, 11m, 19d

	Gary Maley	Ryan Scully	24y, 8m, 16d
	Jackson Longridge	Kevin Nisbet	20y, 4m, 7d
	Josh Mullin	Andy McCarthy	18y, 8m, 25d
	Niko Todorov	Mark Lamont	19y, 4m, 20d
	Dylan Mackin	Neil McLaughlin	18y, 8m, 9d
	Josh Peters
	Jack Hamilton

notes

Thistle generally in playing order, opposition in squad number order.
Thistle filled only 5 of their 7 allocated bench slots.
Scheduled ref Kevin Clancy was replaced by Steven Kirkland.

TTA report

Thistle had the best of the first half although there were chances at both ends. Erskine swept home the opener (14) but a leveller (46) gave Livingston a boost and Thistle were pushed back. It remained 1-1 however, but Thistle missed 3 out of 4 pens to lose out on the bonus point 3-1.

Media report

Robert Thomson, 15-Jul-2017, The Scottish Sun

ALAN ARCHIBALD is targeting up to FOUR new signings after watching his injury-hit side held by Livingston. The Partick Thistle boss saw his team dominate early and go ahead through Chris Erskine, only for Championship Livi to come back strongly and level with Keaghan Jacobs’ second half strike. Livi then claimed the bonus point thanks to Neil Alexander saving three penalties in a row from Christie Elliott, Blair Spittal and Kris Doolan. Archibald, who brought Stuart Bannigan back from long-term injury for his first competitive game, could only name five subs. The Jags’ early superiority came to the fore on the quarter-hour and it was quality from Erskine which got them the lead. He gathered possession on the edge of the box, twisted past Declan Gallagher and simply curled a high shot into the top corner past Alexander. Livi had the ball in the net on 22 minutes but ref Steven Kirkland penalised Danny Mullen for charging into Tomas Cerny before heading home.

Thistle thought they’d scored a second before half-time when James Penrice pounced on an Alexander parry, but he was denied by the flag. Livi almost took advantage of an Adam Barton slip-up but even though Pittman got through one-on-one with Cerny he couldn’t beat the keeper. The attacker got another crack at it from a tight angle but all he could do was flash the rebound across the face of goal. They got the leveller a minute into the second half and it was another cracked. Partick blocked an initial shot on the edge of the box but could do nothing about Jacobs’ shot, as he rifled a riding drive past Cerny into the far corner. Then Alexander was the hero in the shootout for the bonus point, saving three spot kicks in a row.

Reaction

Alan Archibald admits he needs reinforcements before the window closes as he told The Sun:

We only had nine first-team players playing here, there are five missing so we’re short on numbers. We had young kids on the bench and I think that showed. We are still looking for players and ideally I would like three or four in, but it takes time. The first 20 minutes was our best spell in the game but credit to Livi, they came back into it and definitely shaded the second half. You have got to win these games because this group is going to be so tight.

Speaking to the Sun, Livi boss David Hopkin said:

Neil [Alexander] was fantastic, we worked hard to get him here and he’s someone who will win us points over the course of the season. I was delighted with our fitness levels and thought we deserved the draw.

PENALTY HISTORY, BUT NO BONUS POINT FOR THISTLE

● Thistle's 72nd League Cup campaign gets underway.

● The attendance of 1,119 for an opening-day competitive fixture is the lowest on record in 30 years. Back in 1987, just 1,038 turned out to witness a 3-2 League defeat away to Meadowbank Thistle.

● For the first time ever, Thistle take part in a penalty shoot-out for the purpose of gaining a "bonus" point in a League table. Stuart Bannigan has the honour of taking and scoring the first such penalty-kick. Unfortunately, 3-in-a-row thereafter - from Christie Elliott, Blair Spittal and Kris Doolan - are all saved by Livingston's 39-year-old 'keeper, Neil Alexander.

● Thistle are on a run of 4-in-a-row when it comes to unsuccesful penalty shoots. The latest setback follows losses to Queen of the South (2013), Ross County (2010) and Inverness Caledonian Thistle (2009). Ironically, our last penalty win came against Livingston in 2008.

● In the All Games category, Thistle are on a run of 8 without a clean-sheet.

● Thistle's run of avoiding defeat on the opening competitive game of the season continues, unbeaten in the 21st century and now sitting at 18 games. Livingston were the last side to inflict defeat upon the Jags in such circumstances, winning 2-0 in the Motorola Cup Semi-Final on 17th July 1999. The current run is the greatest in the club's history, surpassing the 11 season run between 1940 and 1950.

ongoing sequences:

● 4 consecutive League defeats; 7th May 2017 to date. (Longest run since: 5 defeats; 22nd Aug 2015 to 26th Sep 2015. Club-record: 12 defeats; 27th Feb 1909 to 25th Aug 1909.)

● 6 League games without a win; 15th Apr 2017 to date. (Longest run since: 7 games; 4th Nov 2016 to 20th Dec 2016. Club-record: 26 games; 28th Nov 1908 to 2nd Oct 1909.)

● 7 competitive away games without a win; 5th Mar 2017 to date. (Longest run since: 7 games; 9th May 2015 to 26th Sep 2015. Club-record: 25 games; 20th Apr 1908 to 28th Aug 1909.)

● 7 competitive games without a win, 15th Apr 2017 to date. (Longest run since: 7 games, 4th Nov 2016 to 20th Dec 2016. Club-record: 26 games, 28th Nov 1908 to 28th Aug 1909.)

● 35 consecutive competitive appearances for Kris Doolan, 15th Oct 2016 to date. (Longest run since: Ade Azeez - 46 games; 15th Jul 2016 to 21st May 2017. Club-record: Johnny Jackson - 313 games; 28th Aug 1926 to 25th Mar 1933.)

● 62 away League games without a penalty award, 1st Mar 2014 to date. (Longest run since the club-record: 62 games; 1st Apr 1911 to 7th Nov 1914.)

Stats Watch adheres to our stated definitions of League, League Max, Major Competitive, Competitive or All Games. Where there is no written qualification, you should presume that the Stat in question is compiled from the All Games criteria.

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