Stirling Albion aim for bounceback on Kelty trip as League One hits crunch time

Stirling Albion need a major bounceback as they battle for League One survival with a trip to Kelty Hearts tomorrow.

The Binos come into the game off the back of a pair of bruising defeats to Cove Rangers and Alloa Athletic – conceding nine goals in the process.

Those results have dropped them down into eighth and just three points clear of Annan in the relegation play-off spot, with the final four matches set to have a massive impact on who features in the nerve-shredding contest at the end of the season.

Saturday’s clash at New Central Park is part of a closing run which will see the Binos take on all of the sides in the bottom half of the table – providing the opportunity to quickly make ground or lose it.

Kelty took a major leap towards safety last weekend with an excellent 2-1 away win at fellow strugglers Queen of the South, a result which puts them just one result away from securing their third tier status.

A win could put further distance between Stirling and the Galabankies with just three games to go – including two in front of the Forthbank faithful.

But the pressure could be on for the Binos, with both Annan and Queen of the South facing winnable home fixtures this weekend against Cove Rangers and Edinburgh City respectively.

To get the points, Stirling will need to arrest their poor form on the road this season – with the season record between the two sides offering a snapshot of their campaigns.

The home side have won each of the three matches between the teams – Stirling prevailing 1-0 thanks to a last-gasp Josh Cooper winner in August, before the young winger scored his first career hat-trick as part of a thumping 5-0 success in January.

Cooper was also heavily involved in the sides’ October meeting in