Falkirk reaction

Stirling Albion boss Stuart McLaren was understandably delighted to start the season with a 1-0 win over Falkirk at Forthbank in Group B of the Betfred Cup.

Darren Smith got the only goal just before the interval as we beat the Bairns in normal time for the first time since a 1-0 triumph at Forthbank in September 1996.

He said: “We are obviously really pleased to get the result but we are not going to get carried away. The most satisfying thing is the performance the lads put in, given that we’ve only played a couple of friendlies and we have eight new faces.

“The players showed good tactical discipline and I thought our fitness was very good, which is a reward for the hard work the players have put in.

“Against a very good Falkirk side we caused them a lot of problems, especially in the first half, and we stood up well towards the end.”

Falkirk manager Peter Houston said: “One team played like it was a cup tie and one team played like it was a pre-season friendly. It’s as poor a performance as I have seen in the two years that I have been here.

“The hungrier team won the tie and all credit to Stirling Albion because they were organised and hard to beat. I think we should have had a penalty but a goal then would have masked a very poor performance.”