COWDENBEATH have to make a fast start to Saturday’s Pyramid Play-Off Final second leg to get back into the tie.

Boss Maurice Ross felt his team were hard done by at New Dundas Park at the weekend with the sending off of Harvey Swann the key moment in the 3-0 loss.

And the awarding of a penalty to the home side soon after was another critical blow, he felt.

Certainly home boss Robbie Horn felt that the spot-kick award was ‘rather soft,’ but Ross was most unhappy at these incidents which happened in the run up to half-time.

“It was a massive occasion for both clubs, but two moments proved very costly for us,” he said this week.

“The second booking of Harvey Swann was very harsh, for you could see that he won the ball in the challenge, and it left us a man short for an hour.

“Then minutes later comes the penalty, when the player goes down far too easily and of course it gave Bonnyrigg a huge advantage. It really was galling.

“However, we have to look to this Saturday now and get right back into this tie by putting them under heavy pressure and getting an early goal.

“We know what is at stake and we have to be prepared to go that extra mile to keep the club in the league.”

Horne admitted that the penalty was a lucky break for his team and he feels that the tie is anything but over.

Cowdenbeath will almost certainly have a three man attack for Saturday with Liam Buchanan, Sam Ompreon and Andrew Barrowman in the side.

Experienced wing-backs Craig Thomson and Fraser Mullen can also be expected to be back in the team.

Airdrie showed in last weekend’s Championship Play-Off semi-final how a game can change if chances are taken. Three goals adrift on aggregate in the second period of their tie with Montrose, they went on to score four goals in 15 minutes to take it to extra-time, where they added two more.

Cowdenbeath need to produce something similar this Saturday to keep the club from dropping into the Lowland League.

“It is a big occasion and we have to be ready to battle all the way to turn this situation around,” added Ross.

“If we can put them under heavy pressure and take our chances we can get back in this and ask them serious questions.”

The Cowdenbeath manager indicated that he will make a couple of changes for the second leg.