Cowdenbeath’s first home win of the year could not have come at a better time.
The narrow success, which should have been more emphatic, sees the Blue Brazil two points ahead of Brechin City and Forfar Athletic.
A home win over City this Saturday would put the Fifers in the box seat.
Cowdenbeath should have been three goals clear at the interval. The home side carved out chance after chance in one of their best first-half performances of the season.
Ayr keeper Greg Fleming had a string of top-drawer saves from Lewis Milne twice, Declan McDaid and Greig Spence, who also hit the bar.
But Fleming’s heroics kept United level at the break, and the irony was that it was an own goal that beat the keeper.
In 54 minutes McDaid’s corner was headed into his own net by Sean McKenzie, who had only been on for Ryan Stevenson for two minutes.
Ayr played better after that, and Ross McCrorie and Ross Docherty both hit the Cowden bar. But the Blues held on.
“In the first-half we were excellent and created enough chances to be well clear at the interval,” said Cowden player/boss Colin Nish.
“The Ayr keeper had four or five superb saves and, had a couple of these gone in, we could have been out of sight.
“It was strange that when we did get a goal it was an OG.
“But to be fair to Ayr, after that they came right back into the game and we had to defend well in the closing stages of the game.”
Nish added: “We have four massive games left and we have to look to win them all.
“The only way we can get to a very safe position is if we keep on winning and that has to be our aim, starting with Brechin this coming Saturday,” he added.