McLeish emphasizes St Mirren's fight for Scottish League Cup survival
Yahoo Sports • 2 min read • Latest: Jul 26, 2026, 9:57 PM
Last updated Jul 26, 2026
Craig McLeish has pledged that St Mirren will fight to retain the Scottish League Cup trophy despite a challenging draw against Rangers in the last 16. St Mirren ended their group stage with a 1-0 loss to Dunfermline Athletic, which left them unseeded for the draw despite topping their section. McLeish expressed frustration over the disallowed goal and the late penalty awarded against his team. He insisted that to defend their title, they must overcome tough opponents, beginning with Rangers in the next round.
- •St Mirren lost 1-0 to Dunfermline Athletic in their final group-stage game.
- •The defeat prevented them from being seeded in the League Cup draw.
- •McLeish criticized a late penalty decision and a disallowed goal during the match.
- •St Mirren will face Rangers in the last 16 of the Scottish League Cup.
- •McLeish urged his team to be smarter in critical moments of the game.
- 10:06 AMYahoo Sports — St Mirren 'punished' for Dunfermline defeat
- 9:57 PMYahoo Sports — McLeish vows fight to retain trophy despite difficult draw
"Craig McLeish has vowed that other teams are going to have "to claw" the Scottish League Cup trophy off St Mirren after his holders were given the "most difficult draw" away to Rangers in the last 16. The Paisley side lost 1-0 at home to Dunfermline Athletic in their final group-stage game, the late penalty meaning St Mirren failed to finish with enough points to be one of the seeded teams in the draw despite still topping their section. "Frustrated by the ending of it," manager McLeish told BBC Scotland.
"Former midfielder Ryan Flynn says League Cup holders St Mirren have been "punished" for failing to to beat Dunfermline in their final group stage game with a tough last 16 draw at Rangers. Before Sunday's game against the Pars, Craig McLeish's side had won all three of their group stage matches against Dumbarton, Cove Rangers and East Kilbride but lost 1-0 to Dunfermline on Sunday after Chris Kane converted a late penalty.
Sources
External links- Yahoo SportsJul 27, 2026, 10:06 AMSt Mirren 'punished' for Dunfermline defeat
Former midfielder Ryan Flynn says League Cup holders St Mirren have been "punished" for failing to to beat Dunfermline in their final group stage game with a tough last 16 draw at Rangers. Before Sunday's game against the Pars, Craig McLeish's side had won all three of their group stage matches against Dumbarton, Cove Rangers and East Kilbride but lost 1-0 to Dunfermline on Sunday after Chris Kane converted a late penalty.
- Yahoo SportsJul 26, 2026, 9:57 PMMcLeish vows fight to retain trophy despite difficult draw
Craig McLeish has vowed that other teams are going to have "to claw" the Scottish League Cup trophy off St Mirren after his holders were given the "most difficult draw" away to Rangers in the last 16. The Paisley side lost 1-0 at home to Dunfermline Athletic in their final group-stage game, the late penalty meaning St Mirren failed to finish with enough points to be one of the seeded teams in the draw despite still topping their section. "Frustrated by the ending of it," manager McLeish told BBC Scotland.
Original reporting and copyright belong to the linked sources. SportsNewsReport.com aggregates and links — it does not republish full articles.
Related Stories
Last 14 days
NWSL•Oct 17, 2026, 9:22 PMRodman, Spirit claim playoff spot as Gotham fails to clinch NWSL Shield
EPL•Oct 17, 2026, 9:18 PMVilla's Manzambi shows Newcastle what they missed out on
Champions League•Oct 17, 2026, 9:05 PMLulli and Castro celebrate ‘Roma dream come true’ with first goals
LaLiga•Oct 17, 2026, 9:00 PMThree talking points from Betis 2-5 Barcelona
Champions League•Oct 17, 2026, 8:53 PMInter move clear at Serie A summit with Bologna win
Ligue 1•Oct 17, 2026, 8:52 PMUSMNT's Reyna continues fine form with goal in Strasbourg loss to PSG