LUKE DONNELLY was on target against Arbroath as Alloa booked a spot in the SPFL Trust Trophy quarter finals.
Alloa’s number 9 headed past his old club to score the only goal of the game, seeing the Wasps into the final eight of the competition.
Arbroath visited the Recs as the most in-form team in League One, recording three wins in their last three games.
Alloa had suffered their first defeat of the league campaign against Cove Rangers the week before, looking to bounce back and carry on their cup run.
The Lichties had most of the ball in the first half but didn’t manage to do much with it, with Tochukwu Ogayi very much a spectator in the opening 45.
Alloa looked to hit Arbroath on the counter, with Kane Thomson coming back into the side to make some charging runs forward, linking up well with Steven Buchanan on the right hand side.
Donnelly would be the difference in this fourth round tie, his towering header finding the back of the net inside 16 minutes against his old club.
The visitors had a golden opportunity to equalise as Craig Slater’s effort struck the post, but Arbroath could not find that cutting edge finish.
“Every game we play, we go out there and try to win it,” Andy Graham said. “It’s not a cup run.
“The only thing we spoke about was that we played so well against Partick [Thistle] in the last round and we didn’t want to let ourselves down in a home tie when we have an opportunity to progress.
“That was the most pleasing thing for me to qualify for the next round.”
Alloa came out the break far better than Arbroath and searched for a second goal to kill the tie off.
Luke Rankin caught onto a deflection to have a chance at close range, with Aidan McAdams reacting quickly to deny the youngster’s effort.
Graham continued: “The target at the start of the night was to get through to the next round and we’ve managed to do it.
“I’m really pleased with that and with some aspects of the performance, at times I thought we were good – Aidan McAdams made some good saves to stop us getting that second.
“You always know that if you don’t get it then Arbroath are going to put you under a lot of pressure in the last 10, 15 minutes.
“They did that but I was really pleased with how we stood up to it – I think Phil Ogayi’s only had one save to make.
“I’m pleased with the overall performance and I’m pleased, most importantly, to get into the next round.”
With 15 minutes to go, Arbroath began to throw everything they had at Alloa to force an equaliser in the tie.
Their best opportunity came in the last kick of the game, with Ogayi showcasing lightning quick reflexes to go low and deny Gavin Reilly at the death.
“That’s what he’s there for,” Graham said. “I don’t think he’s had a lot to do but in the last 15, you’d think he might have had a lot more saves to make.
“They had some opportunities but couldn’t hit the target but he’s come up with a big save when it mattered.
“That’s what being a goalkeeper is all about, being patient and waiting for your moment to shine and he certainly did that with the save.”
The full-time whistle blew, giving Alloa a spot in the quarter final draw on Wednesday, October 16.
This is the first time the Wasps are in the quarter-finals of the SPFL Trust Trophy since 2018.
Other results around the competition mean Alloa go into the hat alongside Greenock Morton, Queen’s Park, Dunfermline, East Kilbride, Ayr, Livingston and one of either Rangers B or Stenhousemuir, with their tie yet to be played.
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