Stenhousemuir FC v East Kilbride

Match Report

MATCH REPORT

Stenhousemuir v East Kilbride at Ochilview Park, S trenhousemuir on 25.7.17

Betfred Cup Section G           Att 201

Stenhousemuir 1 [Longworth 50] East Kilbride 2 [Winters 47,62]

Stenhousemuir – McMinn, Meechan, M.Dunlop, R.Dunlop, Marsh, Blockley [McGuigan 76], Paton [b19], Halleran [Gilmour 66], McMenamin, Longworth and Donaldson [Ferns 76]. Subs not used – Scott, Smith and Gracie.

East Kilbride – McGinley [Kean h/t], McLaren, Coll [b55], Russell [b59], Howie, Gibbons, Winters, McCann [Hughes 81], McNeil [Coogans 70], McLeish [b86] and Strachan. Subs not used – Anderson, Caldwell, Proctor and Ferris.

Referee –David Dickinson     Assistants – Andrew McWilliam and Kevin Lindsay.

This was a game that the Warriors needed to win to have a chance of qualifying for future rounds of the Betfred Cup. A home game against non-league opposition would be seen by many as an easy win but we know at Ochilview that East Kilbride won the Lowland League comfortably and were only a penalty shoot out away from joining the SPFL. Added to this is the fact that East Kilbride put Stenhousemuir out of the Scottish Cup a couple of season’s ago meant that they were never going to be underestimated.

Stenhousemuir gave competitive debuts to Lewis McMinn and Harry Paton the latter having recovered from injury. The first period saw Stenhousemuir have plenty of the ball without real penetration in what was a cagey affair.  Things could have been different if the referee had awarded Stenhousemuir a penalty after Paton went down in the box and although there looked to be contact the on-loan player was cautioned for simulation. The visitors had an Adam Strachan shot wide and a Ross McNeil effort blocked whilst Stenhousemuir flashed a shot just wide. All in all though the first period was a fairly dull affair. At half time East Kilbride made an enforced change with Matt McGinley the keeper replaced by Jacob Kean.

The Warriors started the second period slowly and were punished only two minutes after the restart when an unmarked Sean Winters headed a Bernard Coll cross into the net off the underside of the bar. This stung Stenhousemuir into action and within three minutes the tie was level again. Paton dispossessed an East Kilbride defender before picking out Jamie Longworth and he steered the ball past Kean. This brought about Stenhousemuir’s best spell of the game and Colin McMenamin headed over shortly afterwards. Thomas Halleran and Ross Dunlop then linked up to create an opening for Longworth but his effort went wide. Nathan Blockley then had a header deflected wide as Stenhousemuir pushed forward. They were caught out once again though in the 62^nd minute when Winters scored his second with a bicycle kick that was well executed but once again he was given too much room. Three minutes later he had a good chance to get a hat trick but with only McMinn to beat shot wide of the goal.

As the game progressed Stenhousemuir did have attempts to equalise. At first it was through long range strikes by Blockley and Ross Gilmour but as the game progressed they were managing tom play further upfield. A turn and shot by Longworth   in the 72^nd minute squeezed just past the far post

Longworth really should have scored in the 81^st minute when a Michael Dunlop header picked him out but he got his timing all wrong and the ball hit his standing leg.  In the last minute a McMenamin shot was deflected for a corner which was headed towards goal by Michael Dunlop but was cleared off the line.

Nevertheless by the final whistle East Kilbride held on for victory and thus moved above Stenhousemuir in the section and with the other results it meant that Stenhousemuir were going to struggle to move off the bottom of the table.