NEW manager Kieran McAnespie watched on as battling Bankies beat Irvine Victoria 2-1 on Saturday.
Goals either side of half time from Nicky Little and Joel Kasubandi saw the interim backroom team end their tenure with an 100% winning record.
Interim manager Gordon Robertson was forced into two changes from the side that beat Blantyre. Mark Burbidge failed a late fitness test and with Jordan Shelvey unavailable, Peter McGill and Alan Frizzell earned a recall to the starting eleven.
Bankies started on the front foot but couldn’t find the opening goal. A fine overlapping run from marauding full back Robbie Halliday saw him cross for Kasubandi, but the striker’s acrobatic effort flew narrowly wide of Vics goalkeeper Chris Lamb’s right hand post.
Surprisingly, it was centre back Jamie Lyden who created the most clear cut chances of the first half. First, he he rose well to meet Peter McGill’s corner, with Lamb equal to the header. Then, just minutes later, Lyden tried his luck again from the edge of the area but to no avail.
Just before the break, Bankies took the lead. Little found the run of Robbie Halliday who in turn fed the ball back to Little at the edge of the area. His first time shot was blocked by Kasubandi, but Lamb was unable to prevent Little from forcing the rebound over the line as he claimed his tenth goal of the season.
Less than two minutes after the restart, Vics levelled. A defensive mix-up played David Adams through on goal, with the forward rounding Josh Lumsden and slotting the ball into an empty net.
But Bankies persevered and on 70 minutes, got their noses in front. Hashim Cole’s darting run into the box saw him meet a cross from the left with an audacious back heel that found Kasubandi. who skipped away from the Vics defence to slot home and claim his third goal in two games.
The introduction of Stevie Young paid almost instant dividends, but the striker’s bursting run was prematurely ended with a cynical challenge on the edge of the area. Provider couldn’t turn scorer though, as Hashim Cole’s free kick was high and wide of the target.
As the clock struck ninety there was one last chance for Vics to salvage a point, but Lumsden spread himself well to tip a certain goal round the post as Bankies made it back to back wins.
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