Stenhousemuir 2-2 Montrose

Aug 17 2008 Ally Graham Reports

BEAMING Stenny boss John Coughlin praised his side after they staged a remarkable second-half fight-back in a bad-tempered battle.

The home side found themselves 2-0 down at half-time but snatched a point thanks to two second half goals from Scott Dalziel.

And as both sides pushed for a winner, Montrose gaffer Jim Weir was sent off after a bust up on the touchline.

Coughlin said: "We were tortured in the first half so I had to make some changes and to get two second-half goals was great for us.

"Whether or not we deserved to win is another thing but we remain undefeated in the league and that's the most pleasing aspect."

The game started at a frantic pace and Stenny had Willie Lyle and Stevie Ferguson booked for reckless challenges.

However, Montrose weren't fazed and they took the lead in style in 10 minutes. Scott Anson played in Bradley and he cut inside before unleashing a rocket past Keiron Renton from fully 25 yards.

The Links Park outfit added a second within 11 minutes.

Jamie Buchan slid a pass to John Baird (left) who curled the ball home.

The home side were denied a penalty just before half time. Ross Gardiner tugged the jersey of Stenny's John Ovenstone and ref Colin Brown pointed to the spot.

But he overruled his decision when he saw the linesman's flag for offside.

Stenny tried to shake things up after the break with two substitutions and Dalziel made it 2-1 in 66 minutes, heading home from six yards.

The home side now had their tails up and levelled three minutes later.

Baird tried an ambitious backheel out of defence but Chris McGroarty read it and crossed to Dalziel who bulleted a header past Kelly.

With five minutes left tempers flared and Montrose manager Weir was shown a red card by ref Brown.

Montrose assistant Kevin McKeown said: "I'd rather not talk about the manager's sending off, but to come here and be 2-0 up at half-time and not win, was so disappointing.

"We were forced to make too many changes and that didn't help us maintain our momentum."