GARDNER SPEIRS today admitted defeat was hard to take for Queen's Park as Ayr left it late at Hampden.

Despite taking the lead when skipper Tony Quinn netted from the spot after Scott McLaughlin had handled a header from new Spiders star Shaun Rooney, the SPFL League Two side couldn't hold on to claim an early cup scalp at the National Stadium.

Michael Moffat's leveller just after the break brought the Honest Men level before Alan Forrest netted at the death for Mark Roberts' side.

Boss Speirs said: "I was gutted to lose so late on and to poor goals. But there were plenty of positives to take from the game."

It was not just Queen's season that got off to a losing start on Saturday, with Quinn's era as captain also faltering at the first hurdle after he was appointed as the new Hampden skipper.

Speirs said: "Tony is the ideal man for the job. His loyalty to the club, to the team and to the supporters over the years has been fantastic, it has been first class. I am sure he will be a fine captain for us and lead by example on and off the park."

Meanwhile, Jim Duffy is confident his Clyde kids have a bright future in the game as he gets set to utilise the best of his Broadwood youth ranks this summer.

Duffy has added Ryan Frances, Brian McQueen and Michael Daly to his squad ahead of the new SPFL League Two season and saw his young side slip to a narrow 2-1 Ramsdens Cup defeat to Falkirk on Saturday.

The Bully Wee boss said: "I have been delighted with the young players. If the situation at the top end dictates that you can't bring in players then, of course, that will help the younger ones because they will get more of an opportunity.

"You have got to believe in them. They were involved in all the pre-season matches and were terrific.

"We are delighted with them and hopefully they can make a positive contribution, not just to Clyde, but to the game.

"We hope they have long and successful careers and this is just the early stages of their development.

"It is certainly something that I am not perturbed about because they are good players and it would only have been a matter of time before they had pushed through anyway."