Raith Rovers defender Grant Anderson was left to reflect on a startling miss as the Kirkcaldy side crashed to bottom team Livingston on Saturday.
The Stark’s Park star also bemoaned the failure of his team-mates to take advantage of the chances they had created in a contest which he felt was closer than the margin of victory might suggest.
“I could possibly have had a hat trick today but it just didn’t happen for me in that sense.
“If I’d put that one away just after half time it could have turned the game on its head, but all credit to Livingston.”
Former Dundee and Dunfermline frontman Mark Burchill was involved in the incident which defined the game when he was hauled down in the penalty area by Ross Perry after two minutes,
The Raith defender was handed a straight red before Jordan White converted the penalty.
Playing with 10 men for virtually the entire 90 minutes was always going to prove a formidable task for the Kirkcaldy side and they fell two behind midway through the first half when Burchill latched on to a superbly placed cross from Callum Fordyce to head past Rovers keeper David McGurn.
The game looked over when Gary Glen made it 3-0 to the visitors two minutes before the interval, but a retaliatory strike by Anderson right on the half-time whistle provided the Kirkcaldy side with a glimmer of optimism.
Anderson missed a glorious opportunity to reduce the deficit shortly after the interval when he fired over the bar with the goal at his mercy.
Livingston regained control and sealed the points with late goals from Danny Mullen and substitute Michael McKenna.