It wasn’t a dream start to their Championship campaign but Arbroath at least have a point on the board after a tough afternoon in Ayr.
The Lichties survived waves of attack early on with keeper Derek Gaston denying The Honest Men on four occasions.
The Angus side improved in the second 45, but were made to battle even harder in the final 10 minutes with skipper Tam O’Brien sent off.
It wasn’t pretty but the main positive is that Dick Campbell’s side are up and running having avoided defeat.
Courier Sport takes a look at four talking points from the clash at Somerset Park.
Attacking options needed
Although he has one of the smallest squads in the Championship, Dick Campbell does have options to change things up in defence and midfield.
Up top, though, there is a need to strengthen.
Against Ayr, Kieran Shanks led the line and had a tough 45 minutes. It wasn’t for a lack of trying, though.
There’s no doubting he has an eye for goal after netting 21 goals for Inverurie Locos last season. But the former Aberdeen kid can’t be relied upon for bags of goals this season.
Daniel Fosu replaced Shanks at half-time and Arbroath looked a better team when he was on. However, the Englishman is not a natural striker having played largely as an attacking midfielder.
Elsewhere, Dale Hilson and Luke Donnelly, although they can pose a threat, scored just the one goal between them in the league last term.
In the Premier Sports Cup, just two of their 10 goals came from forwards.
Dick Campbell is set to bring in another attacking player in the coming week but you’d expect him to be on the look out for another goal-getter, most likely on loan, as a priority.
He will be desperate to find another gem like Joel Nouble, Jack Hamilton or Anton Dowds who can make an impact.
Real test
Arbroath breezed through the Premier Sports Group stage with relative ease.
At times last season, they made some Championship games look like a walk in the park.
Any supporters thinking a trip to Ayr would be the same were given a wake up call.
The Lichties were made to work for their point and, at times, it looked like they could be leaving Somerset Park with nothing.
Really healthy crowd at Somerset Park for the Championship kick off between Ayr United and Arbroath. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/cJaDftHLpz
— Scott Lorimer (@scottlorimer89) July 30, 2022
Their first half display was poor, as Dick Campbell acknowledged. They were sloppy in possession and Ayr were able to find their way through to goal with ease.
It took them until the half hour mark to begin getting to grips with the game. Even then, they never really looked like troubling the Ayr keeper.
The trip to the west coast was a test, one they just passed.
It’s too early to have any major concerns about the side but they’ll have to be a lot sharper if they want to make their mark on games.
Handy Hancock
One of the clear positives for Arbroath at Ayr was the cameo of Mason Hancock.
The teenager was brought in on a season-long loan from Aberdeen last week.
After being introduced on the 66th minute, he looked a real threat and almost made an immediate impact as a Colin Hamilton through ball was just out of his grasp as he ran in on goal.
1️⃣8️⃣ Mason Hancock pic.twitter.com/z3QUSorgFf
— Arbroath FC (@ArbroathFC) July 30, 2022
He also offered the side something different to the long balls up the park.
Every time he got the ball to his feet, he looked to drive forward.
Not many runs paid off against the tightly-packed Ayr defence but his positive play was a welcome injection into the side.
The Dons referred to him as a centre back but he can play anywhere down the left.
It won’t come as a surprise if we see him bombing down the wings in games to come.
Tam O’Brien red card
O’Brien was given his marching orders on 81 minutes for clumsily hauling down Dipo Akinyemi on the edge of the box with what can safely be described as a rugby tackle.
Dick Campbell had no complaints over the red card. And even though they battled on with a man down, Arbroath never really looked troubled.
The problem now, though, is they will be without their skipper for their first home game.
That means Inverness will face an Arbroath side without, arguably, the best defender in the league.
While the red didn’t affect the Lichties on the day, they will have to deal with the consequences against one of their toughest opponents.
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