Arthurlie boss Duncan Sinclair left to rue defensive woes

Lie looked on course for their first win against a top five side this season, before Rutherglen Glencairn pounced on defensive errors to claim a point.

He said: “From where we are now and where we were at the start of the season, it’s night and day.

“Every single player deserves praise for that.”

Strikes in either half from James Marks and Lee Roulston seemed to have Lie on course.

They had chances to make it three before former player Liam Gormley got his team back in the contest and then another ex-Lie ace, Gary Smith, nodded home the equaliser with only five minutes to go.

The result keeps Arthurlie fourth in the Premiership table.

In a day that promised so much for Sinclair’s men, it was the visitors who started brightest and James Digney had to do well to get down and block an early effort.

Glencairn were the more prominent team and Jay McKay fired over after good work by Harry Mitchell, before Dale Simeon released Del Esplin on the right and he tried to set up Smith, only to be denied by a timely interception by Lie defender Niall Reynolds.

Lie were 2-0 up and cruising before throwing away lead against Rutherglen

Smith then fired a free-kick from 25 yards narrowly over the crossbar as Glencairn’s pressure continued.

Arthurlie started to take control of the game as half-time approached. Marks shot just over and then combined to free Del McNab, whose effort got past Garry Whyte in the Glens goal but a defender managed to get back and clear the danger.

With it looking certain that the sides would go into the break goalless, Marks reacted first in a crowded penalty area to force the ball home and put Arthurlie ahead.

READ MORE: Arthurlie: Sinclair calls on side to silence their critics

It was soon 2-0 when Roulston pounced on sloppy defending to fire home on the hour mark.

The visitors then made changes and pushed men forward in search of a way back into the game. Their gung-ho approach was rewarded as Gormley reduced the deficit with his first touch.

Arthurlie immediately introduced Hal Bohme for Josh Payne as they looked to tighten up but he almost restored the two-goal advantage when he chipped Whyte but the ball came back off the crossbar.

And, with five minutes to go, it was all square as Smith headed home the equaliser.

Right on full-time, Arthurlie looked to have grabbed all three points when Roulston saw his shot from outside the area fly past Whyte but it went agonisingly wide and the sides had to settle for a point a piece.

It was a missed opportunity for Lie to finally end their top-five hoodoo, much to Sinclair’s frustration.

He said: “The first goal put us on the front foot and we looked as if we were very comfortable. I thought we totally dominated the start of the second half as well and I wasn’t surprised when we doubled our lead.

“Everything looked great from our point of view.

“To then go and lose two goals in the last 15 minutes and not manage the game properly is very frustrating.

“I wasn’t shy in letting the guys know what I thought and who I thought was to blame for the goals that we lost because I thought they were errors on our part.”