The Diamonds cruised to victory in their first competitive match of the 2024/25 season with a resounding 8-0 victory over East Kilbride at the Albert Bartlett Stadium.

A new-look Airdrie side began the match, with only four of the team who were narrowly defeated by Partick Thistle in the final game of last season making it into Rhys McCabe’s first XI of the Premier Sports Cup Group Stage alongside returning skipper Adam Frizzell.

A familiar face in Hibernian loanee Murray Johnson started between the sticks to begin his second stint with the Diamonds, while Dylan MacDonald, Aidan Wilson, Rhys Armstrong, Terrell Agyemang and Ben Wilson all came in to make their debuts.

The visitors made three changes to the side which took home two points from their first League Cup fixture as they beat Dumbarton 4-2 on penalties.

Referee George Calder’s whistle sounded to start the match, and only 30 seconds passed before it sounded once again, this time to signal an Airdrie penalty.

Lewis McGregor had been found by a pinpoint chipped ball, and a clash with the outrushing opposing goalkeeper David Wilson following his touch was deemed to be a foul on the Airdrie striker.

The resulting penalty was expertly dispatched by Ben Wilson for his first Airdrie goal after all of 90 seconds.

The second of the evening followed soon after, as Frizzell was found by a superb long ball over the top of the East Kilbride backline, however despite his initial effort being saved, it fell to McGregor who made no mistake in slotting home into an empty net.

The visitors did well in controlling possession, and appeared highly confident in their passing play. This, however, mattered not in the 20th minute.

Ben Wilson seized onto a loose ball on the halfway line and accelerated beyond the chasing pack of defenders, perfectly slotting away beyond his namesake in the opposing goalmouth to notch his second of the evening.

A cagey ten minutes followed, with neither team creating many goalscoring opportunities, but the visitors once again looking promising, putting together some impressive passing plays.

Despite this, an incredible three more Airdrie goals soon came within five minutes.

Some calamitous defending saw the ball won by Armstrong inside the East Kilbride penalty area before he was able to turn and smash a powerful strike into the roof of the net.

The 34th minute saw the fifth Diamonds goal and the debut hat-trick of Ben Wilson, whose superb movement allowed him to glide into the box and poke home at the far post from an
inch-perfect MacDonald cross.

Mason Hancock got in on the act three minutes later, when Aidan Wilson rose highest at a corner, with his header falling to the feet of the English defender who made no mistake in firing beyond the despairing goalkeeper into the top left corner.

An incredible first half of football came to an end with the crossbar shaking from Craig Watson’s free-kick effort and the scoreline at 6-0 to a red-hot Airdrie side, who made their way off the pitch to a standing ovation from the home fans.

Although the second half was a less busy affair, it began in just the way the first had ended.

McGregor stole the ball from a visiting defender in the 52nd minute, and squared to Ben Wilson, whose effort was miraculously blocked off the line before it fell to McGregor, who volleyed home to finish off the move he began.

The eighth and final goal of the afternoon came only two minutes later when the in-form McGregor raced onto a superb



Armstrong through-ball and slotted past Wilson into the bottom right corner to net his hat-trick.

Rhys McCabe took the opportunity to make a quintuple substitution, with Cammy Bruce, Murray Aiken, Cammy Cooper, Chris Mochrie and Gavin Gallagher replacing Agyemang, Frizzell, Watson, Hancock and McGregor.

The visitors also introduced Keir Samson and Tiwi Daramola for John Robertson and Andy Stirling in the search for a consolation goal.

This was not to come however, as the remainder of the match petered out in uneventful fashion. The Diamonds were happy to defend their lead, and the visitors, seemingly dejected, created little to trouble them.

The full-time whistle saw Airdrie claim the record for the largest ever group stage win in the League Cup, with a performance that will fill fans and new signings alike with hope for the coming season – starting with the trip to Dumbarton on Saturday afternoon.