Dejected Dougie MacDuff admits Irvine Vics are now playing for pride after Bellshill Athletic ended their hopes of a West of Scotland League Cup run.
The Westenders crashed out of the competition at the first round stage on Saturday after losing 4-2 on penalties at Rockburn Park.
Franny Kilpatrick and Ciaran Walsh missed from the spot to seal Vics’ fate after the teams were tied at 1-1 at the end of 90 minutes.
Kilpatrick had fired Vics into an early lead but gave away a first half penalty that led to Bellshill’s equaliser.
And boss MacDuff said: “It’s a really disappointing way to go out.
“I can’t fault the boys for effort. Overall I was delighted with the performance. We maybe didn’t create as many chances as I would have liked though.
“The focus for the remainder of the season now has to be on getting ourselves off the bottom of the league.
“That’s two good performances since the start of the year and we have to try and build on that.”
A league trip to fifth bottom Muirkirk awaits Vics this weekend and MacDuff has reason to feel confident about returning to Irvine with a positive result.
He added: “Muirkirk have slipped off the pace in recent weeks.
“Hopefully they don’t find their form again against us.”
Don't miss the latest Ayrshire headlines – sign up to our free daily newsletter here
