You can tell a lot about a team by how they handle the walk back out after half-time. Muirend were 2–0 down, annoyed with themselves, and still convinced the game wasn’t gone. That confidence came through all weekend, because as soon as the final whistle went the club kept sending over clips, notes and their own take on what happened. They clearly felt the second half said something worth sharing.

I was there, and they were right. The first half wasn’t great. Loose passes, soft goals and a shape that never settled. But the restart was different. The tempo changed and so did the intent. The subs arrived, the ball started moving quicker, and suddenly Muirend were the ones dictating it. Seven goals in around half an hour tells its own story. You don’t fluke that at this level.

The manager, Stefan Bortkiewicz, kept coming back to the same word: resilience. He spoke about a rough run of fixtures and knowing this was a chance to react. They rushed things before the break; after it, they stuck to their identity and trusted themselves on the ball. Once they levelled, he said the players knew they would go on and win it. You could see that on the pitch.

The captain, Nick “Disco” Stewart, had the kind of half you expect from a leader who doesn’t shout for the sake of it. He found room, used the ball well and kept things steady when the game opened up. He still gave his own man of the match to John Tierney, which tells you what he thought of the hat-trick.

Tierney didn’t hide from the key moment either. His first goal mattered most to him because it dragged them back in after being two down. Only a few games played this season and he turns in a performance like that — the confidence is clearly there.

Around him, the rest added their pieces.

Cammy Duncan talked about the pass that put Aldo through for the third goal, a finish he was quick to praise.

Michael McCaig mentioned the milestone: the first time Muirend have scored seven since the club began. He also admitted he missed two sitters before the comeback started, which is exactly the kind of honesty that tells you this was a proper team effort.

And Steven McArthur spoke about dropping deeper, covering more ground and using the game to get his own confidence moving again.

Different roles, different voices, same theme — they all saw the second half as a marker. A reminder of what they can be when they settle down, trust themselves and use the energy they’ve actually got on the bench.

Seven goals, a proper reaction — Muirend should enjoy that.

Read the full Muirend interviews:

Inside Verdict — Manager Stefan Bortkiewicz

Captain’s Feature — Nick “Disco” Stewart

Hat-Trick Interview — John Tierney

Player Reaction — Cammy Duncan

Player/Chairman Reaction — Michael McCaig

Player Reaction — Steven McArthur