Match Preview
Tomorrow afternoon all thoughts of Christmas will be banished for at least a couple of hours as we make the trip to the seaside to face an Ayr United side that are much improved from the side we defeated at Firhill 2-0 back in October.
We are, however, travelling to Somerset Park in good spirits and on the back of last weekend's 5-2 success at Airdrie United confidence is naturally high. After last Saturday's game manager Ian McCall talked about the importance of the following that win up with positive results in the next three fixtures as well. As we aim to do just that starting tomorrow against Ayr the manager was able to give www.ptfc.co.uk the latest team news.
"There are one or two players that haven't been feeling too well but nothing too serious and they should be fine to play tomorrow. Of those feeling unwell the worst is probably Jim Hamilton and he isn't in today."
"Aside from those feeling a little less than 100% we have pretty much a full squad to select from for this match. We could probably have played Liam Buchanan in this match but we are planning to leave him out for just one more game. The plan was originally to play him in a bounce game on Wednesday but we took a look at the pitch which wasn't in the best of condition and decided to leave Liam out and train with physio Kenny Crichton. He returned to the squad and full training on Thursday but with the weather the way it is today we will struggle to get a grass pitch to train on and because of that we will probably leave Liam with the physio again. We have a game with Rangers at Murray Park on Monday and we plan to give Liam about 70 minutes in that match in preparation for the Queen of the South game on Boxing Day."
"Even if Liam was part of the squad it would have been a tough decision as to who would start tomorrow up front. Simon Donnelly and Steve Lovell did really well against Airdrie United and they look as if they are building up an excellent understanding. I would love though to have Simon, Steve and Liam all available. I do really hope that we can keep Stevie at Firhill and I am currently putting proposals together for January, where we could see 3 or 4 players leave, for the Board of Directors to take a look at. I am also keen to extend Jamie Adams stay at Firhill but much of that will depend on the situation at Kilmarnock."
Should there be any weather problems tomorrow we will endeavour to keep the Thistle fans updated on any developments. We would also advise Thistle fans to check the SFL website and the official Ayr United website for any updates.
Partick Thistle Stats
Current Form - Last Five Games
W D L F A
3 0 2 10 8
Scorers Season 2009/2010
Liam Buchanan 11
Simon Donnelly 8
Paul Cairney 5
Mark Corcoran 3
Chris Erskine 3
Steve Lovell 3
Kris Doolan 2
Bryan Hodge 2
Jim Hamilton 2
Jamie Adams 1
Alan Archibald 1
David Rowson 1
Last Game
Irn-Bru Scottish League First Division
Saturday December 12th 2009
Airdrie United 2, Partick Thistle 5
Ayr United Stats
Current Form - Last Five Games
W D L F A
2 2 1 4 4
Scorers season 2009/2010
Mark Roberts 5
Ryan Stevenson 3
Andy Aitken 1
Chris Aitken 1
Kenny Connolly 1
William Easton 1
Ryan McGowan 1
Stephen Reynolds 1
Own Goal 1
Last Game
Irn-Bru Scottish League First Division
Saturday December 12th 2009
Dundee 3, Ayr United 1
Last Meeting
Irn-Bru Scottish League First Division
Saturday October 17th 2009
Partick Thistle 2, Ayr United 0
Teams
Thistle: Tuffey, Paton, Archibald, Hodge, Robertson, Maxwell, Cairney, Rowson, Buchanan (Hamilton), Donnelly (Doolan), Corcoran (Erskine).
Ayr: Samson, Keenan, N McGowan (Gormley), Gibson, Campbell, Stevenson, R McGowan (Cawley), C Aitken, Easton, Roberts (Prunty), Borris.
Scorers
Thistle: Corcoran (7), Buchanan (37)
Crowd: 3,055
Match Details
Irn-Bru Scottish League First Division
Saturday Dec ember 19th 2009
Ayr United v Partick Thistle
Kick-off: 3:00pm
Prices
Adults :£15
Concessions (under 16s and senior citizens only): £8
How to Get There
By Supporters Bus
By Rail
There is a half hourly train service from Glasgow to either Ayr or Newton-on-Ayr. The ground is a ten minute walk from both stations.
By Car
A77 to Ayr, and at Whitletts roundabout take third exit (A719) and follow until after Ayr Racecourse. Take first right at traffic lights then left and right into Somerset Road.
There is, limited, car parking located next to the Main Stand. Price £1.50.
Other First Division Fixtures
Dundee v Morton
Dunfermline Athletic v Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Queen of the South v Raith Rovers
Ross County v Airdrie United
Match Officials
Referee: Euan Norris
Assistant Referees: Tommy Johnston and Gary Kirkwood
