Dumbarton went down at the first hurdle of the Irn-Bru Challenge Cup as they fell to a late Mark McGuigan strike in a 1-0 defeat to Stranraer at Stair Park.

Ex-Son Christian Nade had his shot saved after 83 minutes, but goalkeeper Alan Martin was only able to parry his effort into the path of McGuigan to tap in from close range.

Manager Stevie Aitken made attacking changes early on in the second half to try and force the issue, but it was the League One side that progress through to the last 16 of the competition.

The Sons rarely threatened in the first half with the best chance falling to Ryan Stevenson, who fired over after 25 minutes.

The game was full of a catalogue of errors and missed chances at both ends of the pitch.

And the only clearcut chance in the first half fell to the hosts, with Ryan Thomson’s header being saved by Martin.

The former Hamilton man was brought into action again, with McGuigan drilling a shot low towards the bottom corner only for Martin to save.

Neither team could take the game by the scruff of the neck, with both sides jostling for possession in the middle of the park and the second half carried on a similar vein the first.

Debutant Sam Stanton had a quiet first outing and was hauled off after 57 minutes along with Stevenson, with Garry Fleming and David Smith trying to freshen up the Dumbarton attack.

And the duo combined minutes after with Smith crossing to Robert Thomson, who flicked his effort goalwards.

However, Cameron Belford was luckily in the right spot; rooted to the spot, the effort bounced off the inside of his feet to roll safely out of play.

The substitutions brought a lot more energy to the Sons’ attack, and with Andy Stirling and Smith swapping wings throughout, it kept the Blues defenders on their toes.

However, it was former player Nade who had the biggest impact off the bench.

The striker added a physicality to the Stranraer attack, and Brian Reid’s substitution paid off after 83 minutes.

The Frenchman initially had his shot saved, however, McGuigan reacted quickest in the box and was able to slot in one of the easiest goals he’ll ever score in his career.

And with little time left on the clock, the Sons looked to press forward.

A disappointing performance from Dumbarton, but their priorities firmly lie with the league and boss Stevie Aitken will be looking for his players to bounce back on Saturday against Hibs (3pm kick-off).

Fans are reminded that the game is an all-ticket game, and DFC season ticket holders need to exchange voucher number two for a match ticket.

The club will be opening the stadium late on Thursday from 5.30pm to 7.45pm  and we will be open on the Wednesday from 9.30am to 3.30pm plus again on Friday (same hours).

STRANRAER (4-4-2): Belford, Dick, McKeown, Bell, Agnew (McCloskey, 88), Turner, Thomson, Gibson, Malcolm (Nade, 72), McGuigan (Maley, 89).

Subs not used: Currie, Richardson, Sherrie, Dempster.

DUMBARTON (4-4-1-1): Martin, Pettigrew, Docherty, Buchanan, Stevenson (Fleming, 57), Todd, Gallagher, Thomson (McCallum, 67), Stanton (Smith, 57), Barr, Stirling.

Subs not used: Ewings, Kassarate