Stirton ploughed into the collisions, and after a series of vigorous challenges, referee Ben Chisholm pulled him up for one he felt deserved a caution. For Stirton, having been shown a yellow card earlier, the second yellow became a red.
Thistle’s comeback had shaken Marist, but the writing seemed to be on the wall for the veteran-laden Jags once Chisholm blew for the end of 90 minutes. A diving far-post header by second-half Marist substitute Jett Hogg to make it 4-3 two minutes into extra time appeared to underline the obvious.
Goalkeepers frustrate their oppositionThistle found reserves from somewhere to craft chances for striker Nic Somerton and Ure, interspersed with further near misses for Marist, as goalkeepers Raymond Rickard (Thistle) and Wilson McCullough (Marist) frustrated their opposition.
Ure got on the end of a Somerton chip two minutes from time, but the ball was scrambled clear, and Hogg put the issue beyond doubt in the last minute.
Marist had seemed to be cruising at 3-0. They led 2-0 at halftime after attacking midfielder Luis Toomey, in the 24th minute, and striker Harry Mason, in the 40th, cracked in hard shots from the edge of the penalty area.
Midfielder Tom Tidy’s near-post glancing header in the 50th put Marist three up.
Nine minutes later, Ure gave Thistle hope when he spotted McCullough two, maybe three metres off his line and shot from 40 metres. The ball hit the underside of the bar and bounced in off the keeper.
Two minutes later, Ure got the ball nearly 50 metres from goal and, with no one open to take an attacking pass, took off . . . right into the penalty area, where he was fouled by one of Marist’s outstanding performers, rightback Joel Restieaux.
Stirton scored from the penalty, and adrenalin surged in Thistle.
In the 70th, Somerton ran on to a pass from Ure and had the ball in the net but was called offside.
Marist had dropped a flank player deeper to counter the Thistle raids, but Stirton, Dave Watson and Ure were holding their own against an impressive Marist midfield that featured Toomey, Tom Tidy, Dylan du Ross and Dick. With striker Tai Barham darting back to help set up play, Marist were always dangerous.
Thistle coach John Stirton had laid a defensive foundation that only got stronger as the game progressed. While Daniel Contreras and Jake Robertson were willing at rightback and leftback respectively, the central trio of David Raggett, George Andrew and Stefan Faber were Thistle’s defensive bedrock. They were seldom threatened in the air and were dangerous at attacking set pieces.
It was from one of these, a left-wing corner from Kane Stirton, that the ball was directed back for Andrew to meet with a diving header to level the scores, and anything seemed possible.
John Stirton saluted “a lot of brave souls out there” . . . his players had stepped up, especially the older brigade. Andrew, Rickard, Raggett and substitute Hudson Leite, who had come on for injured striker Sam Patterson, all deserved mention.
Marist coach Jamie Dunning said his side made hard work of it.
Their game management was poor and the decision-making at times let them down. Thistle’s third goal was the first Marist had conceded from a corner this year.
“We’ll pick the bones out of it (at training) on Wednesday, and they’ll learn from it.”
Referee Chisholm kept the lid on a game that sometimes walked a fine line between keenly contested and ill-tempered.
