Each of the first three seats to be declared on Friday during Falkirk Council's elections count saw a Conservative loss - a heartstopping moment for the party locally.
They had defied expectations in 2017 to take seven seats on Falkirk Council and had hoped to build on that by persuading people that they were the only party with enough support to challenge the dominance of the SNP.
But as the 2022 results began to trickle in slowly, there was bad news for them as Lynn Munro in Bo'ness and Blackness, Nigel Harris in Denny and then David Grant in Bonnybridge and Larbert all lost their seats in quick succession.
