Promotion contenders Gretna 2008 boosted their campaign on Saturday, taking home all three points from a blustery Warner Park. The conditions were far from ideal, with Eyemouth playing into a fierce wind in the first half. The Fishermen played below par in the first period, conceding two sloppy goals. The first, on 25 minutes, came from a corner, with Gretna’s John Jardine free at the far post to bury the ball into the bottom corner of the net. Ten minutes later a defensive mix up between Alan Speirs and Alan Jess led to Gretna’s second, with Daniel Carmichael on hand to put the ball in the bottom corner for the visitors. The Fishermen got one back just before the half-time whistle, with Andrew Hastie appearing from the back to fire a deflected shot into the net. Eyemouth gaffer Carl Hudson was less than impressed with his team’s first half performance, and a few choice words at half time saw the Fishermen take to the field a different side at the re-start. The home side pushed Gretna for an equaliser, with good chances falling to Andrew Sword and Mark Windram but they couldn’t capitalise. The ball did hit the back of the Gretna net, one of the visiting back line putting it pas their keeper for an own goal. But referee Andrew Rooney judged it came off an Eyemouth player and controversially disallowed the goal for offside. The home side again fell victim to a debatable decision soon after when Andrew Sword went clear on goal but was pushed and pulled to the ground in the visitors’ box. No penalty was given, and the Fishermen finished the game with nothing to show for it. Eyemouth manager Carl Hudson felt his team deserved something from the game: “We felt hard done by,” Hudson commented. “They hit the bar in the second half but we deserved something for our second half performance. I don’t like to moan about referees but I thought we were unlucky. The second half decisions went against us. We had the ball in the back of their net at one point, it was an own goals but the ref said it came off our player and ruled offside. Then Andrew Sword was brought down, it was a stonewall penalty but the ref was the only one in the ground who didn’t see it”. But Hudson said their was no excuse for his side’s first half performance. “We weren’t good enough in the first half, it’s as simple as that,” he admitted. “We were playing off the pace, I wasn’t particularly happy with the defence and I had a few stiff words at half time. I told them in no uncertain terms I wasn’t happy. But we looked like a different team in the second half and i thought we deserved something from the game. Gretna are a good side, they’re quick and play some good football. But we had enough chances to win the game at Easthouses Lily the previous week, and that was against a side that beat Gretna 1-0 before Christmas.” Hudson added: “We’re sitting second bottom of the table and with the players we’ve got we shouldn’t be there.”