McBeth's stoppage-time winner gives Ayr a 3–2 win over Queen's Park, but the Morton game is still unplayed
Sunday 1 November 2026 · By Ben Logan
Ayr United needed until the 93rd minute on Saturday, but they got the three points. Luke McBeth scored on 90+3 at Somerset Park to give Gary Naysmith's side a 3–2 win over bottom-of-the-table Queen's Park, and the SPFL's headline for its report was "Ayr hit back to beat Queen's Park".
It was a game of twists in front of 1,587. R. Taylor put Ayr ahead on 26 minutes, with Holt providing the assist. Queen's Park then came back through Aidan Connolly on 57 minutes. M. Rus restored the lead on 67, set up by McMann, and Connolly equalised again on 83, with an assist from C. Smith. McBeth then scored the winner, as confirmed by the BBC, the SPFL and PA. We haven't been able to confirm the first names of Taylor and Rus, so we are using the initials from the match records. Ayr led 1–0 at half-time.
The win ends a short spell without one. Ayr had not won since beating Livingston 2–1 on 3 October, and in between they drew 1–1 with Dunfermline on 10 October and lost 1–0 at home to Partick on 16 October. This is their fourth league win of the season. The BBC form guide reads W L W D L W. We haven't found a quote from Naysmith or a statement from the club after the game, and Queen's Park's own report was unavailable to us.
On the BBC Championship table taken at 13:01 GMT today, Ayr are seventh on 15 points from 12 games, with four wins, three draws and five defeats. There is no promotion or relegation zone attached to that position. They are four points above Arbroath, who have played 13, and five above Morton, who have also played 12. They have scored 13 and conceded 14. At Somerset Park they have won two, drawn two and lost three, while away from home they have won two, drawn one and lost two.
The Morton game is the loose end. Ayr's trip to Cappielow was postponed on 24 October because of a waterlogged pitch, and Morton said it would be "rearranged in due course". As of 13:00 GMT today we haven't found a new date, from the SPFL or the BBC. The BBC fixture list does show Ayr against Morton on Wednesday 23 December (19:45 GMT), but that is a separate scheduled meeting and is not described as the rearranged match. Ayr and Morton have played 12 games to everybody else's 13.
Ayr go to Annan Athletic in the KDM Evolution Trophy on Tuesday 3 November (19:45 GMT), and then visit Arbroath on Saturday 7 November (15:00 GMT). Arbroath are eighth on 11 points and have lost five league games in a row. After that they host Raith Rovers on Saturday 14 November. In the Scottish Cup third round, on the weekend of 28 November, they are at Largs Thistle.
A win at Gayfield would stretch Ayr's lead over Arbroath to seven points.
Somerset Park has been home to Ayr United, the Honest Men, since 1910, on a site used for football since 1888. It sits in a tight pocket of streets off Somerset Road, a short walk from Ayr town centre. Visiting supporters get one of the more old-fashioned afternoons left in the Championship: terraces behind both goals, a roof over the away end, and a ground that still feels like a football place. Capacity is a little over 10,000, with only about 1,600 seats, so most people stand.
The pitch runs east to west, 110 yards by 72. The goals are at the ends, not in front of the side stands. West, hard against Somerset Road, is the Somerset Road End, a covered home terrace behind that goal. Leave it to the Honest Men. East, beside the railway, is the Railway End, the covered terrace used by travelling supporters on a bigger fixture. That is the stand behind the goal if your ticket is for the away terrace. Along the south side is the Archibald Leitch Main Stand of 1920, with a later wing and the Family Stand beside it. Opposite, the North Stand opened in 2024 over the old open terrace and houses the Ally MacLeod hospitality suite.
Allocation changes with the crowd, so read the ticket before you travel. On many ordinary games a small away group stands in the paddock in front of the Main Stand. For larger followings, including Morton, Partick Thistle and Kilmarnock, the club opens the Railway End behind the goal, sometimes with a slice of terrace to either side. Seated away tickets, when sold, are in the West Stand on the Main Stand side, entered by a different gate. Railway End entry is off Tryfield Place, typically turnstiles 3 and 5. West Stand seating is often turnstile 10. The gates are not interchangeable.
The Railway End is the better bet if you want noise. The roof keeps the sound in, both goals are visible, and there is a burger van and toilets in the away section. It is standing, so arrive in reasonable time if you want the front. Flags, banners and drums are usually allowed after a search. The West Stand gives a seat and a side-on view, with its own snack bar and toilets, and it is non-smoking, including vapes. Pillars in the old Main Stand can break the sightline, so a seat is not automatically better. Kiosks take cash and card.
Ayr station is about a ten-minute walk: out of the back, past the fire station and the Gaiety, up Craigie Road and across towards Somerset Road, then left behind the Main Stand for the Railway End. Newton-on-Ayr is closer if your train stops there. Drivers leave the A77 on the A719 Whitletts Road, pass the racecourse, and follow Burnett Terrace, Hawkhill Avenue and Somerset Road. Street parking is the realistic option. The Main Stand car park is for pass holders. Coaches are usually sent to the West Stand side, next to the Railway End. The address is Tryfield Place, Ayr, KA8 9NB.
There is no proper pub on the doorstep. Most visiting fans eat and drink in town, then come down for kick-off. Buy tickets online in advance, because cash gates are not always open. Stay in the area on your ticket: segregation between the Railway End and the Somerset Road End is real, and the walk back is usually uneventful.