Dundee United squeezed into the second round of the Premier Sports Cup after Ayr failed to get the required margin of victory against Buckie Thistle.
Jim Goodwin’s side qualified as one of the three best runners-up, along with Airdrie and Queen’s Park, after finishing their fixtures in midweek.
Dundee, Aberdeen and Ross County secured the three remaining seeded places in Sunday’s draw along with European qualifiers Celtic, Rangers, Hearts, Kilmarnock and St Mirren.
Spartans delivered the shock of the day to pip Livingston to top spot in Group E on goals scored while Falkirk, Hibernian and St Johnstone also went through as group winners.
Ross MacIver scored twice in between Callumn Morrison’s penalty and Liam Henderson’s header as Falkirk beat Stenhousemuir 4-0 to move above Dundee United on goal difference in Group B.
Ayr needed a three-goal win at home to Buckie to also move above Goodwin’s side and were well on their way following Jay Henderson’s first-half double, but they were pegged back by the Highland League champions.
Jake Hastie put Scott Brown’s side back in front midway through the second half but they could not add to their 3-2 lead to the relief of Goodwin and his Dundee United side, who finished on nine points.
St Johnstone finished top of Group F after a 5-1 win over East Fife. Adama Sidibeh and Benjamin Kimpioka both scored twice while Makenzie Kirk netted late on following Alan Trouten’s consolation goal.
Saints leapfrogged both East Fife and Alloa, who fell to a 2-1 defeat by Morton. Goals by Owen Moffat and Michael Garrity put the hosts ahead before Conor Sammon’s goal gave Alloa hope late on. An equaliser and a penalty shoot-out win would have put them above St Johnstone and sent Dundee United out but they could not find an equaliser.
Aberdeen hit six second-half goals without reply against Dumbarton to secure top spot in Group A. The Dons made a slow start but hit two goals in the first three minutes of the second half through Jack MacKenzie and Ester Sokler, who added a third just after the hour mark. Peter Ambrose, James McGarry and Slobodan Rubezic added gloss to the scoreline in the latter stages.
Airdrie went through as runners-up after a 2-0 home win against Queen of the South. Ben Wilson poked home his sixth goal of the competition and Terrell Agyemang’s near-post finish sealed the points.
Hibernian retained Group C top spot on goal difference ahead of Queen’s Park thanks to a 4-0 home win against Peterhead. Lewis Miller scored early in each half, Rudi Molotnikov fired home his second goal of the competition and Nathan Moriah-Welsh rounded off the scoring with a well-taken volley.
The Spiders also progressed thanks to another convincing win, beating Kelty Hearts 6-0. Dom Thomas atoned for an early penalty miss by scoring a solo goal before setting up Sean Welsh to head home. Roddy MacGregor and Jack Turner both bagged braces.
Dundee had already secured their progress before beating Inverness 6-0 at Glebe Park. Simon Murray scored a first-half hat-trick and Seb Palmer-Houlden struck twice before the break. Antonio Portales headed home late on.
Ronan Hale scored a double as Ross County beat Stirling 3-0. Hale drilled home from 25 yards and then netted from close range just before the interval before James Brown scored late on.
Raith Rovers could have pressed for a runners-up spot with a win over Hamilton but they were held to a 1-1 draw.
Livingston only needed a draw at home to Spartans to progress but Cammy Russell grabbed the only goal for the visitors with five minutes left.
Clyde’s hopes ended after Craig Brown’s early goal secured victory for Montrose. Motherwell will go through if they avoid defeat against Partick Thistle at Fir Park in Sunday’s Group G decider.
