Stirling Albion1–2Dundee Utd

United did just enough to edge out the First Division newcomers who made the Tangerines fight every inch of the way to secure victory on the Club's first ever visit to Forthbank. Not even the boost of a double-quick fire goal turned this tie into a formality. Just 19 seconds were on the stop-watch when Robbie Winters ran in Gary McSwegan's cross from six yards after Jamie McQuilken had created the opening. Chances to ensure a smooth passage came and went as United dominated the opening 25 minutes. Mark McGeown pulled off a fine save to deny Neil Duffy from his shot on the turn and Gary McSwegan shot past after intelligently engineering space for himself. Midway through the half a netbound effort from Armand Benneker was blocked close to qoal. Yet, in what was Stirling's first shot on target, they equalised, John Gibson taking a return pass from Steve McCormick to sweep the ball home from ten yards in the 26th minute. A header from Robbie Winters which was blocked was United's riposte, but the early fluency had now deserted the Tangerines, although Gary McSwegan was unlucky to see his angled effort come back off the face of the bar immediately before the interval.

It continued to be hard going for United in the second period and Stirling looked to be taking the tie into extra-time when Owen Coyle pounced on a error by Gary Paterson, whose pass-back was woefully short, enabling the United substitute to run in on goal and stroke the ball to the keeper's right from the edge of the box. The result apart, there was little else to comfort those with Tannadice affiliations other than the fact that we were not amongst the large band of clubs to suffer the ignominy of defeat at the hands of lower division clubs that night!