Brown Ferguson: It is all about the reaction now from the group after Dumbarton defeat

That run stretches all the back to a 2-1 win over Stranraer in January, which was boss Gary Naysmith and Ferguson’s first match in charge of the Warriors.

On Tuesday night, a Finlay Gray strike sealed a 10 victory for league leaders Dumbarton over Stenny, putting them five points clear at the top.

Ferguson told Warriors TV: “We were very disappointed to lose the run that we have been on since joining the club, but fundamentally our first-half performance wasn’t enough and we gave Dumbarton too much of the game.

“Our reaction in the second half was positive but we allowed them to get a goal in that first period and they got to sit on it, which is what they want to do.

“The goal comes from a throw in and we had a good couple of chances to clear the ball but we didn’t. We weren’t quite mentally tuned in that first half and the goal was a showing of that.

“We are hoping that going forward the players can take a bit more ownership in terms of what needs be done in those moments.

“In fairness to them we did have much more of the game in the second half and coming away with nothing from Dumbarton is no disgrace. Very little separated the teams in all honesty.

“They just had something to hold onto and they did that.”

Looking ahead to Saturday’s trip to Galabank to face third-placed Annan Athletic, Ferguson says it is all about the squad showing a reaction after their first defeat in nearly two months.

He added: “The challenge is now set for the players after Dumbarton. It was highly unlikely that we would have gone through the rest of the season without losing a game. We are facing a very good team, with very good players, who are on form at the moment.

“They will be looking at the game thinking that they can open up a gap on us. We want to see how the players react to a defeat.”