GREG Fleming was the hero as he saved TWO Kallum Higginbotham penalties in TWO minutes late in the game at East End Park to earn Ayr United a point against Dunfermline Athletic writes Stephen Bark.

Nicky Clark had given the Pars the lead in the first half before Alan Forrest equalised early in the second half for the Honest Men with a penalty of his own.

The keeper was quick to play down his heroics after the game.

Fleming said: “I saw Higginbotham had taken one against Hibs and that he had gone to the keepers left.

“I gambled that he would go that way for the first one. It’s not the best of penalties and it’s hit me on the knees.”

There was exactly 11 seconds between the first penalty save and Patrick Boyle’s careless challenge to give away the second.

Understandably, his teammates weren’t best pleased but all Fleming was caring about was who would take it.

He added: “When they get one again, so soon after you’re obviously thinking ‘Who’s going to take it this time?’

“I saw him [Higginbotham] taking the ball. It’s a lottery, basically, which way you are going to go.

“Thankfully I’ve managed to get my hand up. At first I thought it was going to spin inside the post but it’s just went wide.”

The match was just another to add to the incredible run that Fleming is on, having conceded just twice from the 14 penalties he has faced in an Ayr shirt.

Manager Ian McCall was dumbfounded after the match but was absolutely delighted with his keeper’s performance. 

McCall enthused: “I thought he had a great chance to save the first one but his save for the second was just unbelievable.”

The Ayr gaffer also showed some concern at the Honest Men’s lack of goal scoring. McCall said: “We’ve got to be a bit more clinical when players are getting to the bye-line. One out of every two or three have got to be goals.

“Including the Raith Rovers game, that’s about seven of them and we haven’t scored one. So, in that respect we’re disappointed”.