Queen's Park 1 Airdrie 1: Diamonds net late penalty in tense play-off first leg

Airdrie will take a 1-1 draw into the second leg of their Championship play-off semi-final against Queen's Park after a battling match with the Spiders.

A drab first half played out at Firhill as both sides looked to combat the effects of a bobbly pitch in Maryhill.

Simon Murray livened things up in the second half for Owen Coyle's hosts, first having a shot cleared off the line and then dispatching an effort into the bottom corner moments later.

It rattled the Diamonds but it mattered not as with five minutes remaining, Jonathan Afolabi won a penalty for his team, and Rhys McCabe finished perfectly in a big boost for the away side.

It's firmly in the balance heading into Sunday's second leg at the Penny Cars Stadium, where manager Ian Murray will look to guide his team back to Scotland's second tier for the first time since 2013.

Both of these teams headed into this one off the back of outstanding results. Queen's had managed to dump Dunfermline into the third tier while Airdrie completed an almighty comeback against Montrose to prevail 6-5 on aggregate in their semi-final.

Partick Thistle's Firhill pitch has come under scrutiny this season and its surface problems well-documented amid a groundshare with the Spiders. It showed no signs of getting much better.

While looking healthier on the exterior, it didn't take long for the turf to cut up and the ball to bobble, although both teams did try to play a passing game. Not that it was all too successful.

Luca Connell had the first opening for the home side on four minutes but away goalkeeper Max Currie beat his shot down and gathered at the second attempt.

Calum Gallagher responded with a chance of his own on eight minutes but his effort off an Adam Frizzell cross was high