IT WOULD have been easy to forget with all the drama of last week that Alloa kicked off the new season at the end of it.

But, in the first match of the post-Jim Goodwin era, there was plenty of promise for the future with youngster Cameron O’Donnell a standout in an otherwise typically sluggish pre-season affair.

One of Goodwin’s goals was to leave a legacy which would see one to two players from the youth academy stamp their authority on the first team every year and O’Donnell could be the first to make the jump as he slotted effortlessly in midfield beside Adam Brown.

O’Donnell’s display was undoubtedly one of the major glimmers of light in a game which produced only sporadic moments of quality and grew increasingly disjointed in torrential conditions.

Andy Stirling’s first half strike was another and he opened his Alloa account in style.

The midfielder – who was taking up Dario Zanatta’s vacated role on the left – picked the ball up midway through the first half, skipped past Aron Lynas before playing a lovely one-two with Liam Buchanan on the edge of the box and firing past Ryan Goodfellow.

Stirling’s display injected quality throughout and he was also at the heart of things for Alloa’s winner. As the Wasps pressed for a second, his goal bound strike forced Giuliano Morena to block on the line with his hand and Brown made no mistake from the spot.

It really shouldn’t have come down to that, however, as Paddy Connolly’s charges dominated the opening period to keep their guests at arm’s length before Ousman See’s equaliser threatened to secure an unlikely draw for the visitors.

All too often, however, intricate moves broke down in the final third; but there was plenty of encouragement to suggest cohesion will come with more game time.

Stirling’s goalscoring run was a rare touch of class, as was a nice interchange between Kevin Cawley and Buchanan which led to the latter testing Goodfellow.

A sluggish start to the second half forced Neil Parry to be at his best to deny his former club with flying saves before See pounced on a defensive lapse to squeeze the ball home.

But, Alloa steadied the ship and with the introduction of trialist Dominic McGiveron – a former Liverpool academy player who was also being watched by Raith Rovers – they regained their foothold in the game and both O’Donnell and Andy Graham threatened before Brown slotted home.

Goodwin’s shadow remains for now, but Alloa know they can only look forward.

ALLOA: Parry, Robertson, Taggart, Dick, Graham, Brown, Cawley, O'Donnell, Trouten, Buchanan, Stirling. SUBS: Aloulou, McGiveron, Watson, Quinn, Gillespie, Wilson, Henry