Queen's Park vs Cowdenbeath - Queen's Park without trio ahead of Cowdenbeath clash

Posted Tuesday, May 03, 2016 by PA

Queen's Park head coach Gus MacPherson will once again be without midfielder Jamie McKernon for the Ladbrokes League One play-off semi-final first leg against Cowdenbeath.

McKernon has been struggling with a foot injury while club captain Tony Quinn (hip) and forward Kenny Mackay (knee) will also be unavailable as the Spiders look to lay down a marker at Hampden, having only qualified for the post-season matches on goal difference ahead of Annan.

MacPherson, whose side ended their regular League Two season with a 1-0 defeat to the Black and Golds on Saturday, said: "The players knew that if we lost one more goal, Annan would have overtaken us and we put everything into defending our lead.

"I have to ensure that we have the freshest legs on the park as Cowdenbeath have a good squad that have shown their potential positively with a number of good results this season.

Cowdenbeath, who missed out on safety in League One by a point, include defender Fraser Kerr and midfielders Declan Hughes, Liam Callaghan and Lewis Milne in their squad.

However, defender Mo Yaqub and midfielder Declan Byrne have both been ruled out with head injuries while goalkeeper Jamie Sneddon remains absent due to a thigh problem.

Manager Colin Nish said: "We were obviously disappointed to find ourselves in the play-offs after losing to Stranraer on Saturday. We matched them all the way apart from making one mistake just after the break which we were severely punished for.

"Rather than being down about that result we should take confidence from the performance as if we play to that level again we can do well against Queen's Park."