Auchinleck Talbot boss Tommy Sloan reckons his side can make history and become the first team to overturn a first leg home defeat in the Junior Cup semi-finals.

Not since 2014 – when Glenafton Athletic and Hurlford United beat Camelon and Irvine Meadow – have any team came back from a first leg defeat but they had the advantage of a home tie in the second leg.

Since the switch to two-legged semi-finals in 2008-09, only Pollok have managed to win away from home following a first leg home defeat. That was against Clydebank in April 2009 but the sides were locked at 3-3 on aggregate and the Bankies progressed on penalties.

However, Sloan felt his side could be the team to break that duck. He said: “There’s a first time for everything. In the main, we’ve been free-scoring this season. We’re one of the top scorers in Scotland so if we can get back to that I think we’ve got every chance.

“We can’t feel sorry for ourselves. Hopefully we can get the first goal this time, we’re still well in it.”

Connor Birse scored the only goal of the match at Beechwood Park on Saturday as Talbot succumbed 1-0 to Lochee United. Sloan felt the occasion may have got to a few of his players.

He added: “There was a nervousness about us in the first half. It’s a big occasion, the semi-final of the Scottish Cup. You could see we were a bit rushed and we had to settle down.

“The first half was a bit of a non-event. We had one chance, Jamie Glasgow hit the side netting and they didn’t do much either. In the second half, we dominated but we couldn’t break them down and obviously we missed a penalty. Then we lost a goal in the last minute on the counter attack. To be fair, the boys were much better in the second half. It was a real blow to lose a goal with the last kick of the ball but that’s football.”