Stenhousemuir FC v Dumbarton

Match Report

Stenhousemuir v Dumbarton at Ochilview Park, Stenhousemuir on 21.7.15

Pre-season friendly

Stenhousemuir 5 [Malcolm 17, Stirling 52, Meechan 56, Eddington 78, McMenamin 82] Dumbarton 0

Stenhousemuir – Barclay [Shaw h/t], McCormack[Meechan 40], Summers [Henderson h/t], Malcolm [Hamilton 70], Murray, Nash [Millar h/t], Trialist [Cook h/t], Stirling [Trialist 70], McShane [McMenamin h/t], Smith [Eddington 70] and Gilhaney.

Dumbarton – Adger [Burns][t][h/t], Eadie, Martin [Cameron 77], Lightbody, Fyfe [Trialist h/t], Whitefield Paterson 70], Trialist [Ross 77], A.Clark, Biddulph [C.McCallum h/t], Trialist  and Hopkins [Backett 70].

Referee – Colin Steven             Assistants – Graeme Stewart and Alan McFadyen.

What should have been a real test for the Warriors for their last pre-season game became a comfortable stroll in the main with the home side going nap. When the game was arranged almost at the start of the close season Ian Murray was the Dumbarton manager but when he moved on his replacement Stephen Aitken had different plans for the pre-season preparation and wished to curtail the first team matches a week before the Petrofac Cup. This game fell outwith this plan and thus Dumbarton offered to send their Under 20s instead and thus it was a young Dumbarton side that took to the park.

It wasn’t too long before it was clear that the experience in the Stenhousemuir ranks was going to be too much and they took the lead when Stuart Malcolm headed home a cross from future signing Carlos Mazana- Martinez. Dumbarton did come close through a long range effort by a trialist that was touched round the post by Jamie Barclay but other than that he had little to do. The only worry for the manager being the enforced substitution of Jamie McCormack who had taken a heavy knock early in the game.

As has been the pattern in the pre-season there were a number of changes from both sides and this affected Dumbarton more than Stenhousemuir who fielded a stronger team. The Warriors went two up in the 52^nd minute when Stephen Stirling scored with a screamer of a volley from the edge of the box.  Four minutes later the lead was extended following a swift passing move that ended with Ross Meechan firing into the net though Dumbartons Daniel Lightbody may have had the last touch. Fraser Eddington then chipped the trialist keeper ,ex-Stenhousemuir Under 20s player Craig Burns and the keeper was helpless to deny Colin McMenamin shortly after this who scored with a header from an Eddington cross. McMenamin was then denied another goal when Burns saved at point blank range.

There was no further scoring but the quality of the goals would have graced a more important game than this one