Sauchie boss Fraser Duncan reckons their narrow 2-0 defeat to high-flying Newtongrange was a huge step in the right direction for his young squad.

The Clackmannanshire outfit left Victoria Park feeling hard done to after holding their own for long spells in the match before a controversial sending off for full back Danny Ashe swung the game in the Lothian side’s favour.

But the gaffer believes their mis-fortune with the sending off, his men must now look to build on the positives from their overall performance.

Duncan told Advertiser sport, “I wasn’t hard on my players because I thought we were excellent and the red card was really harsh on us.

“I think this performance proves that there is no real panic about where we are at this minute because we have played five of the top sides in the division in our first six games. I think we were causing them a lot of problems and if we had kept eleven men on the park then it might have been a different outcome. Newtongrange knew that as well and you could see that in their reactions at full time.

“I have seen the incident a few times and I don’t think it is a sending off as Danny has pulled out the tackle but that’s football and we just have to get on with it now.

“It is pleasing that we have loads of positives to take into this week and I am happy with the performance. I thought we defended well and that’s the main thing. The first half we had some good chances where we maybe just needed that little bit of luck then even in the second half, we started better but couldn’t score.

“Once we had the man sent off, we still had a good spell on top where Daz Cummings has hit the bar with a brilliant strike and so we still felt we could get something from the game but it just wasn’t to be. In the end, it just proved too difficult to hold out with the ten men.

“Overall, I am chuffed to bits with a decent showing against a very good Newtongrange side who will be right up there in the league come the end of the season and we have left unfortunate not to get something from the game.” Duncan reckons it is now crucial for his side to take maximum points from their upcoming home games as they look to turn Beechwood into a fortress for teams to visit.

The manager also reckons a victory this weekend would be the perfect boost ahead of a tricky Scottish Cup tie away to Wishaw in two weeks time.

He said, “Now we must look to go on a winning run and pick up some points and that has to start at home to Fauldhouse on Saturday.

“It is vitally important for us to get a result and lift our confidence ahead of the Scottish Cup. We need to be winning our home games especially against sides similar to ourselves but I think last weekend’s performance has filled me with more confidence moving forward.” The former Ipswich trainee was pleased with the individual displays by two of his recent additions and hopes they can both contribute in a big way for his side in the coming weeks.

Duncan added, “Kenny Martin came in and got 75 minutes under his belt and he looks like he will be a real goal threat for us in the coming season. We also brought in young Craig Johnston at the weekend as a trialist.

“He really impressed me in the game because he is a tricky winger who likes to take defenders on at pace. He is an ex-Hamilton Accies kid and we will be looking to tie him up on a deal before the weekend.”