Elgin City Football Club manager Allan Hale says his team’s first William Hill League 2 defeat of the season at Bonnyrigg Rose was their worst performance of his time in charge but won’t blame the crippling Borough Briggs injury list

Elgin City’s first league defeat of the season stemmed from their worst performance of manager Allan Hale’s first year in charge.

And the Borough Briggs boss is refusing to blame his squad’s crippling injury list for the 2-0 loss at Bonnyrigg Rose on Saturday.

He is challenging his depleted pool of players to press the reset button and produce a much-improved display for their next outing at home to Forfar Athletic on Saturday.

Hale believes the City fans can help to reinforce their team’s efforts and push them towards a return to winning ways.

After six wins and five draws in their opening 11 games, putting them joint-top in League 2, the Black and Whites suffered their first loss at New Dundas Park.

A goal by ex-Elgin man Angus Mailer and a Mark Ferris second half clincher brought about a result which Hale said his team can have no complaints about.

“I think we got what we deserved from the game,” he said.

Saturday’s match had an additional emotional element for the home side, with a minute’s applause held before kick off as a tribute to Bonnyrigg chairman Charlie Kirkwood, who passed away at the start of the month.

“You’ve got to give a lot of credit to Bonnyrigg,” Hale added. “From their point of view there was a lot of emotion attached to the game which probably brought a little bit more from the squad, and their manager described it as by far their best performance of the season.

“Everything that they displayed in the game in terms of their appetite, their aggression, their ability to press, the belief and the want to win, I feel we lacked in our performance.

“I would go as far as to say it was probably the worst performance that we’ve had from a team since I’ve been at Elgin.

“We just didn’t get going from the start, we didn’t play our natural game, we didn’t get our foot on the ball and try to make any passes. We were quite rushed in possession and we lacked any aggression in the game in terms of the physicality that we usually bring to the game and we just didn’t create enough on goal.

“Those things combined don’t make for a great recipe.

“We were going to lose a game at some point. For me there’s a manner and a way that you are going to lose games. You still need to be showing a bit of aggression and fight, and on Saturday we unfortunately fell just short in that department.”

City’s injury crisis is well documented, with keeper Tom McHale, captain Matthew Cooper, centre backs Jake Dolzanski and Ross Draper and midfielder Rory MacEwan all crocked. Lewis Hyde and Ryan MacLeman were both forced into action from the bench despite being well short of fitness, and key midfielder Russell Dingwall was suspended following a red card against Stranraer the week before.

But Hale insisted: “We can’t use the missing players as an excuse.

“We have been in this position for about a month now and before Saturday we were still able to pick up results. Everyone knows the injury situation and how the squad is depleted, that is an understatement. It’s tough going, especially on games like Saturday when the team isn’t playing well and you look to your bench.

“On Saturday we had four of our under-18s on the bench, and an injured Lewis Hyde and Ryan MacLeman. It’s not ideal, the bench is not the strength that typically it is when everyone is fit and available.

“But we know the injury circumstances and we know that it’s going to be that way for a while.

“We can’t use the injury crisis as an excuse. We’ve still got to put in the level of performance that we expect from the team and that will be the case from week to week.

“I’m not one of those managers that wants to hide behind excuses. If we win, the players will deserve praise but if we lose I will give an honest opinion of how I saw the game, and that is how I saw the game at the weekend.”

Saturday’s opponents Forfar find themselves near the foot of the table and parted company with manager Ray McKinnon after a 3-0 loss at home to Spartans on Saturday.

With a caretaker team in charge this weekend, Hale sees this as an element of “unknown”, and is urging the Elgin fans to get behind their team.

“I think the supporters can see what the players are giving most weeks. We are a team that I believe has an identity in terms of how we play, both in possession and out of possession.

“The supporters definitely play a part, especially more so in the situation we are in with injuries. The noise and the atmosphere and backing that they generate when they get behind the team is really good and it gives the players a lift.

“We are going to need the supporters on Saturday and we will need to stick together.

“It is going to be a difficult game. Forfar have parted ways with their manager, which throws up some real unknowns in terms of what they are going to do.

“Games against Forfar are always tight as well. It will be another physical game, an aggressive game and one that we have to be prepared for.

“We will certainly be looking for a better performance this weekend than what we got last week, that’s for sure.”

Dingwall will return to the City midfield in the only addition to their squad from last week.