Celtic youngster Conor Hazard managed to claim the bragging rights last night as four Hoops loanees’ loan clubs went head-to-head.
Hazard’s Dundee were in action at home to Ross Doohan’s Ayr United. Meanwhile, Jonathan Afolabi’s Dunfermline Athletic traveled to Partick Thistle, who have Celtic defender Lee O’Connor in their ranks.
Only Hazard managed to come away from last night’s games with any sort of satisfaction. Once again, the goalkeeper claimed a clean sheet against Doohan’s side to snatch a 2-0 success at Dens Park. It comes only days after Dundee managed a fine point at Somerset Park, where Hazard also bagged another clean sheet.
However, it wasn’t a great night for either Afolabi or O’Connor. The former played the full 90 minutes for Dunfermline, but he didn’t manage to get on the scoresheet and ended up losing a last-minute goal to Brian Graham.
It was a big moment in Partick Thistle’s season as they secured a vital point. But for O’Connor, it was probably nothing more than a consolation prize after he failed to appear from the substitutes bench.
O’Connor’s situation is getting worrying
O’Connor’s failure to get on yesterday marks back-to-back matches for him on the bench. He also didn’t feature at Tannadice in arguably Partick’s biggest game of the season at the weekend.
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O’Connor also hadn’t managed to win any of his four appearances for Partick since his debut at the end of January (Transfermarkt). He’s been on the end of two defeats to go with his two draws. However, Partick still haven’t come close to a win without him in the side either. The blame certainly isn’t on our man.
Afolabi will be pleased that he can look back on another 90 minutes under his belt in which he put in a spirited showing. He came close to netting a second for Dunfermline before the equaliser, but his energy levels were dropping at that stage.
Doohan, meanwhile, may have come out on the losing side last night, but he’s also still having another productive campaign at Ayr. He’s played 33 times for the Honest Men (Transfermarkt), and still sits fourth in the Championship – meaning he remains in the playoff spots
Hazard, however, was the clear victor on the night. Three points, a clean sheet, and leapfrogging Doohan’s side into third in the table. Afolabi’s Dunfermline now sit three behind Ayr in fifth place, but have played a game more.
The Championship playoff race is a constantly evolving situation of course. For all three men involved, it’s a huge opportunity. Here’s hoping O’Connor can also find his way back into the first-team at Firhill too.