Brechin City v Stenhousemuir FC

Match Report

MATCH REPORTS

Brechin City v Stenhousemuir at Glebe Park, Brechin on 4.2.17

Ladbrokes SPFL League One              Att 402

Brechin City 2 [Jackson 3, Hill 49] Stenhousemuir 2 [Furtado 7, Shaw 16]

It wasn’t clear until kick off whether this game would go ahead or whether it would finish but luckily it managed to get to the final whistle with the spoils shared. The pitch was claggy in front of the main stand and had undergone a pitch inspection that it passed at 11am. Match referee Mike Roncone was concerned about the area when he arrived at the ground and a further inspection took place. It was one of these pitches that wasn’t 100% playable at the time but wasn’t bad enough to call off. The Brechin groundstaff got to work and their efforts meant that the game was able to start. The weather eventually cleared which allowed  the game to be completed.

Stenhousemuir had David Crawford starting for the first time since he returned from injury as Colin McCabe was ill on way to game though he did take a place on the bench. He had to pick the ball out of the net after only three minutes when a clever flick into the danger area by Ally Love was met by Andy Jackson who fired home from close range.

The Warriors equalised though in the sixth minute when Willis Furtado cut in from the right flank before hitting a 25 yarder that flew into the top corner. This certainly gave Stenhousemuir a lift and they took the lead in the 16^th minute when Ciaran Summers won the ball before setting up Oli Shaw who advanced on goal before dispatching the ball past Graeme Smith. Crawford saved a Love effort in the32nd minute before the ball was moved to the other end of the pitch and Smith showed a strong hand to deny Shaw who had struck a powerful goal bound effort.  The game became more feisty in the latter stages and Aron Lynas ended up over the wall when he and Alan Cook challenged for the ball. Paul McLean was cautioned a minute later as tempers flaired.

Just after the start of the second half there was a good chance for Stenhousemuir but Cook dragged his shot wide.  In the 49^th minute the home side were level when Stenhousemuir failed to clear their lines at a corner and Dougie Hill scored from close range. In the 54^th minute Stenhousemuir had a good chance to take the lead after a timely McLean tackle to deny Cook fell to Shaw but he fired over when he had time to pick his spot. Jackson then created a chance out of nothing at the other end when he did well to stretch to get a header on target but it was a simple save for Crawford.

The Denny man was a constant threat and in the 74^th minute despite being outnumbered he created an opening for himself to advance on goal in a solo effort. He managed to draw a foul from David Marsh who clipped his heels and the Stenhousemuir defender was shown his second yellow card of the game and thus dismissed.

Brown Ferguson rung the changes as Brechin looked to make the most of their numerical advantage. Liam Watt came close to scoring with a curling free kick that went just wide. As time progressed there were times where Stenhousemuir were just holding on. In the last minute of normal time Alan Trouten  flashed a shot just wide of the target. The Warriors though had another half chance at the other end but Shaw couldn’t connect.

In the end honours were level and both teams fought hard for their point. There will be disappointment that they lost the lead cheaply but at the same time there is a realisation that the game could have slipped out of their hands if the spirit been weaker.

Brechin City – Smith, McLean [b45], O’Neil, Fusco [Trouten 80], Hill, Rodger, Lynas, Dale, Jackson, Watt and Love. Subs not used – Graham, Caldwell, McCormack, Ford, Dyer and O’Neil.

Stenhousemuir – Crawford, Meechan, Summers, Marsh [b39][so 74], Kerr, Berry, Furtado [Mazana 89], Millar, McMenamin [McCormack 77], Shaw and Cook [Roy 72]. Subs not used – Duthie, Stirling, McCabe and Smith

Referee – Mike Roncone       Assistants – Stephen Mitchell and Jordan Paterson