Ayr United 1
Queen's Park 2
League (Championship)

Match Report

Ayr United were left to rue a late turnaround as Queen’s Park came from behind to win 2-1 at Somerset Park in a tense Championship meeting on 10 March 2026. Ben Dempsey had looked to have secured a point for the Honest Men with an equaliser in the 82nd minute, but Michael Ruth struck two minutes from time to snatch victory for the visitors.

The game was tight from the start, with Ayr shading possession and trying to impose themselves in the home side’s familiar way. Queen’s Park, however, remained dangerous and eventually broke through in the second half when Callum Smith put them ahead in the 58th minute.

Ayr responded with pressure of their own and kept pushing into the closing stages, with Dempsey’s late goal briefly rescuing the afternoon. But Queen’s Park were not finished, and Ruth’s 88th-minute winner condemned Ayr to a frustrating defeat in a match that had seemed destined for a draw.

The result was especially hard on Ayr after a generally solid home performance that produced more possession but not enough decisive quality at either end. Queen’s Park, by contrast, made their moments count and left South Ayrshire with all three points from a game that swung sharply in the final minutes.

Match report written by AUFC Archive