This was another huge win for the club, although for the winning goal fortune smiled on us on this occasion. The wind at times spoiled the game and it was the elements which helped Stevie Hetherington score direct from a corner kick in the second half which proved to be the only goal of the game.

“The Wasps” started the game strongly but could not get that vital opening goal in the first half, although the woodwork did have to come to the rescue of the visitors, Queen of the South. Queen’s ended the first half strongly and gradually grew into the game and Neil Parry in the Alloa goal had to look sharp to prevent “The Doonhammers” taking the lead.

Jack Hamilton had a great opportunity to put “The Wasps” in front but his shot was saved by the Queen’s keeper Jack Leighfield.

Having got the vital goal through Steven Hetherington’s corner going straight in, Alloa were dealt a huge blow minutes later when Andy Graham had his nose broken after being caught by a challenge by Lyndon Dykes.

However at this stage in the season, the only statisic which was important was gaining another three league points as the club strive to retain their postition in the Championship next season. The team defended well and had the defence and Neil Parry to thank on this occasion and now know survival is in their own hands with only three league fixtures left this season.

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jim goodwin after 4th consecutive victory

We are over the moon again, fantastic, the boys are terrific, we didn’t play particularly great today we have played a hell of a lot better than that and lost, people say it evens itself out but that is as bad a performance as we have put in, in terms of possession in a long time but it just goes to show again the resilience of the defenders and big Neilly in goal  who had to make some important saves and we managed to stay in the game. I thought we started the game particularly well in the opening 15 – 20 minutes and were on top, hit the post and looked as if we were going to go in front then in fairness to Queen of the South I thought they were the strongest team for the rest of the first half.

In at 0 – 0 at half-time and we knew we had to improve going into the second half and I thought the second half was a lot more even to be honest. We know the threat Queen of the South have, they are very direct in their approach up to Dykes who is very good in the air and we had to match runners off him and I thought the boys did that, it wasn’t pretty, we got a bit of luck today and I’m really pleased for the boys and that is the first time in the club’s history they have managed to win four games in a row in the Championship, so it is another one the boys can tick off, they have achieved a lot this season so I’m delighted for them.

Andy Graham is an absolute warrior, it is the best word to describe him he has played through so many knocks and injuries that people wouldn’t believe me if I told them, he has a hole in his calf an inch by an inch deep and he had seven stitches in it up at Inverness which got infected. He now has suffered a broken nose today, he has all kinds of problems the big man but he is never willing to throw the towel in and he typifies everything about us as a club and us as a group in terms of character. Just desperate to do anything to make sure we stay in this league. I thought he was outstanding again, we did have a number of good performances, yes we didn’t play well going forward and we know we need to do better on the ball but my back four and particularly big Neil Parry, were brilliant on the day.

The goal we worked hard it in training all week!

No the conditions were difficult, it was very blustery out there, it was one of these ones as the corner left Steve’s boot I thought it was going over the bar to be honest with you, but we got the luck and it went straight in. You get your luck at times and on other occasions we have had bad luck along the way during the season so this was a very good time to get some good luck.

We are delighted but I am pretty sure Gary Naysmith will be extremely disappointed because I thought his team were excellent and If I am being honest and I always try to be honest in my assessment, I thought they were the better team on the day but we got our rewards for our resilience and managing to stay in the game.

We still have three massive games to come and I try not to look at the number on the left with us being in sixth than the points number on the right and I think it is really important for us as a group not to get carried away with that. Yes we are sitting in sixth and delighted to be there but at the same time we are only four points off bottom. All the teams below us are more than capable of winning a couple of games out of the next three, so we just have to make sure that we carry on doing our job between now and the end of the season and I think if we can get one more win then probably that will be enough to keep us in the league.

“The Wasps” collected another three massive league points on Saturday, defeating league leaders Ross County 1-0 for their seventh victory in this season’s SPFL Championship, once again proving there is very little between the sides in this season’s league.

Alloa showed plenty of attacking threat and took the game to the league leaders. Jack Aitchison was able to make his Alloa Athletic full debut having returned after Scotland Under 19 duties and he certainly caused “The Staggies” plenty of problems.

“The Wasps” had great pace on the attack and Dario Zanatta gave them a deserved lead on 33 minutes with a fantastic solo goal to break the deadlock.

As half-time approached the only disappointment was the fact the scoreline was only 1-0 as “The Wasps” could have had another couple of goals.

It had been a tough week for Jim Goodwin’s team playing Dundee Utd, Inverness CT and Ross County back to back.

Ross County brought on ex Wasp Ross Stewart to add to their attacking options as they looked to get an equaliser, but Neil Parry was in superb form and was equal to anything in front of him to secure his eighth shut-out for the season.

The victory for “The Wasps” was well deserved and helped to repay their loyal supporters who travel all over the country including the midweek trip on Tuesday night to Inverness to give them their backing.

The players have done great to stay in the mix and now only five points separate the bottom five clubs.

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jim goodwin after victory against league leaders

We are over the moon with the result which has been long overdue, the three previous games against Ross County have all been close encounters barring the one up their the last time but we were confident coming into today’s game, I know we haven’t been on a great run and everybody would have expected the league leaders to come here and turn us over quite confidently. We worked hard during the week, it has been a really tough week for us, the players energy wise has been testing after two really difficult away games against Dundee United & Inverness CT, the players had to recover quickly because we knew this afternoon was going to be difficult as well and I thought every single one of them was outstanding there was nobody below 7 out of 10.

We are capable of beating anyone on the day if we all turn up and we all play to the level required, we needed our goalkeeper to make a couple of key saves, our centre half to be brave and aggressive and the boys at the top end of the pitch to be on it and I thought to a man, even the boys we came on all contributed something towards a massive three points.

I think the players have done great just to stay in the mix when you consider we have had only one win in seven prior to today we have been on a sticky run but the players deserve all the credit for keeping us in the hunt, I keep saying to you guys and everyone else “The pressure is on everyone else”.

They have all chucked a lot of money out in January, they are all full-time, nobody gave us a hope before a ball was kicked this season apart from ourselves, the board, the boys in the changing room and the people at this club, we were the only ones who could see us saying in the league, with six games to go we still believe we can stay in the league, we have a huge week coming – we play Falkirk Saturday, Greenock Morton on Tuesday and Queen of the South at home the following Saturday, three huge games that could really be decisive where we are going to be next season, and we don’t fear any of those three teams.

Our only criticism at half-time is we were only 1-0 ahead, we should have been two or three up, I thought we had a couple of decent opportunities, I know Neil Parry had to make a good save in the first half but I thought we could have been at least a couple of goals ahead at half-time. The manner of the victory was brilliant, we had to put our bodies on the line at times and we stuck together in the last ten minutes when it was wave upon wave of pressure, Ross County could make some very big changes with Ross Stewart coming off the bench who we know all too well, we know the qualities Ross has and our defenders had to stand up to them, they ended up with two big boys up front, they were very direct and threw everything at us but to a man they all stood up to it and Neil Parry made some vital saves as well.

It has been a difficult week and I think prior to the Dundee United game if you had offered me three points from these three games, I would probably would have took it to be honest to you. So it puts us in a great position going into the remaining games, the boys are feeling great about themselves, we love this league, we love being in Championship and we want to stay here and we will fight and scrap for every single ball to try and stay in this division.

Unfortunately Saturday’s game against Dunfermline Athletic was as poor a game as we have played all season, certainly conditions were not great on the day with a strong icy wind blowing down from the Ochils. “The Wasps” started well and too the game to their opponents, Dunfermline Athletic who were on a run four straight victories in the league moving them up into the Play-Off positions.

When you are battling at the bottom of the table decisions seem not to go for you and on another day Alloa would have been awarded a penalty after 8 minutes when James Craigen pushed Dario Zanatta in the box, but referee Euan Anderson was not moved.

The opening goal is so important in matches but the opportunity was not given. In truth the first half ended with little more of interest in a game which was a poor spectacle for the supporters of both teams.

The visitors started the second half brightly and on 53 minutes Bruce Anderson on loan from Aberdeen scored the games only game, a game which had seemed destined to end 0-0. Alloa fought back in the game but a lack of ruthlessness in the final third of the park and great defending by Dunfermline kept their goal intact.

The result sees “The Wasps” move to the bottom of the division after other results over the weekend were not favourable. However we need to take care of our own results first, we can play a lot better in our bid to beat the drop.

It is another game we might look back and think we might have taken a point, earlier in the season, Dunfermline would have been unlikely to grind out that win earlier in the season, it was a scrappy game and we move on to facing Greenock Morton, who themselves will not be looking forward to facing “The Wasps” having lost 2-1 at Cappielow in January, 2019.

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jim goodwin after defeat against dunfermline

Very disappointed, I thought it was a terrible game of football, conditions didn’t help it was windy, pitch was very sticky, both teams were very wasteful in possession, it was a kind of game which had 0-0 written all over it, neither goalkeeper has had much to do, I can’t remember Neil Parry having a save to make, a couple which were straight forward and Ryan Scully has had nothing to do either.

Disappointed, I would have been delighted to have taken a draw from the game a 0-0 and just move on because it wasn’t a great game of football whatsoever. I would like to see the penalty incident back early in the game, Dario says there was definite contact on his back, a push in the box it is a penalty but we always don’t seem to get these type of decisions unfortunately, so I will watch it back and see but it doesn’t matter at this time, it would have been nice though if we had been given it and try to get our noses in front but I just thought it was a poor game of football. Dunfermline are on a great run of form, five wins, five clean sheets, I thought our two centre half’s marshalled Bruce Anderson very well for the majority of the game apart from the goal and that’s what all good strikers do, they don’t do a great deal during the game and pop up at the key moments and I thought he took his goal particularly well, albeit we need to defend it a whole lot better, we end up with an overload on the right side and two versus one, we don’t do enough to stop the cross then and I think when the ball comes into the box we need to deal with it better, simple as that. However we didn’t do enough going the other way either.

I brought Jack Hamilton in for a bit more presence, he came on down at Dumfries against Queen of the South and did very well, I know Ashcroft and Devine are two good physical centre halves and I though Jack would give us more of an outlet there aerially and physically than what Dario does, knowing Dario has always done well for us on that left hand wing, we just tried to mix it up and see what happens. Jack Hamilton did fine but on the hour mark he is only 18 and would struggle to last the game so it was always my intention to make a change at that time.

It was a bad game of football, it is as bad as we have played all season, it is games like that you just have to grind out a result, I would have taken a point and move on but unfortunately we got done losing a really poor goal.

There is nine games left and in recent weeks we have had luck with results going our way, there are always going to be times we lose and the teams around us win and that’s just the way it is, I was at the Falkirk game last night and they did great to beat Ayr United and Partick Thistle get a last minute winner today but we have had our moments scoring last minute winners, it happens, we just have to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and go again next week against Morton, I think there are teams now getting dragged into it like Morton and Queen of the South, they will be looking over their shoulders, it is not only ourselves Partick and Falkirk which are in it there is other clubs as well, there is still a lot of football to be played. We can’t get too down about the result, I thought we could possibly could have nicked a draw, we certainly didn’t do enough to win it so we will just have to go again next week.

Four back to back defeats in the league have seen “The Wasps” move to the bottom of the division. People had written Jim Goodwin’s men off before a ball was even kicked this season, a lot of good has been said about the team this season already but with eleven games left the players will need to fight with their chests puffed out and heads held high to turn round recent results.

For “The Wasps” this was another frustrating game, the result and the fact we are not getting ahead in games at present and the faux pas that have led to the loss of cheap goals.

Taking the lead gives you a platform and that’s exactly what happened after only four minutes, Partick Thistle are fighting for their lives and they got the vital breakthrough.

Alloa couldn’t penetrate Partick Thistle’s sturdy, well-drilled resolve with Steven Anderson a rock in “The Jags” defence. Thistle were under pressure at times before the important and killer second goal but they stood up to it, which earlier in the season they might have buckled but Gary Caldwell’s new look side look to be made of sterner stuff.

However, Scott McDonald’s goal eleven minutes from time, clinched a massive win for Thistle taking them off the bottom of the league into eighth position, thistle now unbeaten in their last five league matches.

The Alloa players efforts could not be faulted, they will fight and give us more to be proud of before the end of the season but with only one shoot on target on Saturday, when Jack Hamilton’s effort was blocked on the line, we need to be more positive and put opposition keepers under more pressure, on Saturday the Thistle keeper choose to run the clock down from early in the game.

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jim goodwin after defeat against partick

We were looking forward to the game but the game plan went out of the window after losing a goal in only three minutes, we were then chasing the game from then on. I have spoken enough about the cheap goals we are giving away, I don’t think in our last four league games the opposition hasn’t had to do a great deal to score and that’s the disappointing thing for me because it is the same group of players, the tactics are the same as they were in the first half of the season but for whatever reason we are just giving sloppy goals away. The first goal was a poor goal, we have to defend the cross better when it comes into the box and the second goal as well is poor defending. I would love to be able to give the opposition credit in terms of that they had cut us open or the played some great football there, or it was a fantastic free kick but lately I haven’t been able to say that. And that is because our defending at times has just been so poor and that puts us on the back foot and straight away you are chasing the game. Partick then could afford to come off the game, like they did, I think they started to run the clock down from about the fifth minute of the game it was incredible.

It was very frustrating from the side lines you want to try and get a little tempo and get some urgency in the game, but it is very difficult when they are taking half minute each time to get the ball in play every time the ball went out. It was a frustrating afternoon but we just need to pick ourselves up again it is as simple as that. We need to stop giving ourselves a mountain to climb each week, it would be great to get our noses in front and see how the opposition react and then maybe we could take or feet of the gas and let the clock run down,.

We are very disappointed we have now lost our last four league matches but at the same time I have said to the players that we are only seven points adrift of fifth, the league is really tightening up. This time last year it must have been very difficult for Brechin City when you consider they were only sitting on three or four  points, and they were relegated and it was a formality where as from our open point of view we are still in it, we have a lot to play for and it is really important we don’t get too down on ourselves, we have put ourselves in a really good position, unfortunately we are currently on a bit of a bad run but four games prior to this run we had gone six games unbeaten.

We are a good team I believe in the players , I think we actually played well today and I believe we played some good football at times today, possession stats are great but at the end of the day what matters is who scores more goals than the other team. Next week we need to look to bounce back in what will be another difficult game against Queen of the South at Dumfries. But we need to get back to winning ways.

Manager Jim Goodwin was again disappointed after “The Wasps” lost their third league game in succession to drop to ninth position in the table as Falkirk ground out the three points. Once again “The Wasps” started brightly and looked to take the game to the visitors. Dario Zanatta causing danger from the wing but the all important opening goal was at the Clackmannan Road end of the pitch with Falkirk captain Jordan McGhee heading home his first goal of the season.

Alloa came straight back looking for an equaliser Alan trouten had an effort blocked before Connor Shields slammed home a deserved equaliser just after the half hour mark, his second goal of the season to bring the game level.

The visitors Falkirk looked more solid in defence than earlier in season but Alloa looked to take the lead before the break and were denied when Paul Dixon blocked Alan Trouten effort off the line.

Two minutes into the second half Alloa were to lose a killer second goal when they did not clear their lines and the ball was played across the face of the goal for an unmarked Mark Waddington on loan from Stoke City to score his first senior goal.

Alloa applied pressure and had the best of the possession but Falkirk remained resolute and could have scored themselves again on the counter attack. Although at times Falkirk had ten men behind the ball they had more shots on goal than “The Wasps” which was frustrating. Alloa manager Jim Goodwin, brought on both loan signings Jack Hamilton & Jack Aitchison to try and clinch a point. The closest “The Wasps” came to clinching a draw was a Scott Taggart shot which just missed the target at the far post, Jack Hamilton had a half chance in front of goal but it just wouldn’t sit for him. Indeed another goal line clearance after William Edjenguele sliced a cross ball across towards the net but was cleared off the line by Ciaran McKenna.

As the clock ticked down, Alloa keeper Neil Parry ran upfield from his goal to add height at a corner kick but to no avail as Falkirk keeper Harry Burgoyne gathered under pressure. A game there was not much between the sides but Falkirk gained the important three points on this occasion. With now twelve games left we will go again against Partick Thistle who are currently bottom of the table but have strengthened in the January transfer window, in what will be another difficult game but on our day we have already shown this season we can be a match for any team in the division.

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jim goodwin after derby defeat

I don’t want to sound like a broken record but recently I have been saying how we are gifting teams goals which is completely out of character for us as a team. We now just have to pick ourselves up again, in the first half I thought we played really well, conceded a poor goal then came back to score a decent goal ourselves which took us in level at half-time. Then it was a carbon copy of last week, where we get it back to 1-1 at half-time and we were looking to take the game to Falkirk and then concede a goal within the opening two minutes. A really poor defensive goal with a catalogue of errors, we should have put the ball out of play in the far side, we then had two miss timed headers, its just unfortunate but that is the way it is and Falkirk are the kind of team once they get their noses in front they are a very hard team to break down, and they managed the game very well in the second half in fairness to them but they did get ten men back behind the ball and made life very difficult for us and unfortunately we just couldn’t find that key pass to break them down.

I have no concerns on how we are playing in terms of possession wise, that’s the way we play, I said that to the players on Tuesday evening as it is coming into the time in the season when it is all about results, but I still want us to try and play good football and gain results that way, I’m not going to ask them to play a style of football that is not how we train and put ten men behind the ball and just hang on, that’s not the way we have done it up until now and it is certainly not how we are going to be playing in the next twelve games. We will continue to play the way we play and hopefully luck will change and we will stop making the individual errors which we are making just now and one result can make a big difference and we will have another massive game next Saturday against Partick Thistle and hopefully get back to winning ways.

I have just said to the players there is no point dwelling on today’s result , we will work hard in training, and we will look back at the video analysis and try and cut out the mistakes because at this moment in time we are needing to score three goals to win a game and that is not realistic.