Winning In The Rain: Thriller On The Green

Saturday 9th April 2016
Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division
Finnart AFC 3 v 3 Oban Saints AFC
Glasgow Green Football Centre
28 Kings Drive
Glasgow
G40 1HB
Kick Off 2pm
Referee Mr Michael Mccart

Saints starting line-up:-

Thomas McCulloch

David McArthur
Marc Maccallum (Captain)
Paul Kerr
Dougal Graham

Ross Maitland
Keith Millar
Donald Campbell
Scott Maitland

Dean Smith
Allan Mackay

Used Substitute:-

Craig Campbell

Unused Substitutes:-

Alex Craik
Peter MacCallum

Saints Goalscorers:-

Donald Campbell ⚽
Ross Maitland ⚽
Craig Campbell ⚽

Saints travelled to Glasgow Green last Saturday in search of three precious points to keep their league Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division hopes alive. Injuries, holidays, work commitments and a flitting robbed the travelling party of five of the squad that had slipped agonisingly out of the Scottish Amateur Cup on Saints last outing. With long term injury victim Martin Bonar and the suspended Dene Cassells also unavailable Manager Alex Craik's options were stretched the the limit forcing him to name himself and Coach Peter MacCallum on the bench along side new signing Craig Campbell. The starting line-up of Thomas McCulloch in goal; a back four of David McArthur, Marc Maccallum, Paul Kerr and Dougal Graham; a four man midfield consisting of Ross Maitland, Keith Millar, Donald Campbell and Scott Maitland; and a front pairing of Dean Smith and Allan Mackay had an unfamiliar look to it and the players took some time to adjust to the enforced personnel changes and new formation. A mix-up with pitch lets meant a late switch from 3G to grass and a delay to the kick off while a Glasgow City Council groundsman marked out the long but extremely narrow park. Finnart, playing in their shocking pink breast cancer awareness kit, kicked off in bright if not yet particularly warm sunshine and had their first sight of goal inside the first minute. Saints failed to clear a Finnart throw-in from the right touchline with the ball falling kindly for veteran striker Daniel Taylor who sent his first time shot inches wide of Thomas McCulloch's right hand post. Saints failed to take heed of this early warning and fell behind in the third minute. Finnart left full back Andrew Robertson made a terrific run on the left wing and forced his way into the box past David McArthur and Marc Maccallum before cutting back onto his right foot and curling a delightful shot into the postage stamp corner giving Thomas McCulloch no chance. Saints enjoyed a good spell after going behind without really threatening the Finnart goal. Allan Mackay forced Finnart keeper Brian Paton into action in the eighth minute chesting down a Ross Maitland cross and firing in a left foot shot which the keeper did well to stop low down to his left. However Referee Mr Mccart judged Allan to be offside giving the benefit of a tight decision to the home side. The home side doubled their advantage in the fourteenth minute with a long ball over the top catching out Dougal Graham and allowing right winger Andrew Forrestt to run in behind and dispatch a fierce right foot shot past a hopelessly exposed Thomas McCulloch. Saints produced their best move of the first half in the seventeenth minute with Allan Mackay and Donald Campbell linking up well to set up Scott Maitland for a right foot shot from the edge of the box which had Brian Paton at full stretch to tip round his left hand post for a corner kick. Ross Maitland flighted over the corner kick from the right which the Finnart defence could only partially clear. Donald Campbell gathered the loose ball just inside the box and deftly lobbed the ball over a ruck of players into the postage stamp corner squeezing the ball in between the cross bar and the head of Ryan McLean on the goal line to half the deficit. Dougal Graham picked up the first yellow card of the afternoon in the twentieth minute for a foul on Andrew Forrest leaving the Saints full back with no margin for error in his battle with the lively winger. Forrest was quick to exploit this advantage outpacing Dougal on the right wing before sending in a tempting cross to which Daniel Taylor was quickest to react getting across Paul Kerr to bullet a header past Thomas McCulloch to restore the home side's two goal advantage. The 3 - 1 score line at this stage was very harsh on Saints who were playing some decent football but full credit to Finnart who ruthlessly punished any mistake from the new look Saints back four. Dean Smith came close to reducing the arrears in the twenty fourth minute after some good build up play on the left from Dougal Graham and Scott Maitland forced a throw-in level with the eighteen yard line. Scott picked out Allan Mackay with the throw who held the ball for Donnie Campbell to feed Dean Smith whose snap shot from just inside the box went just the wrong side of the keeper's left hand post. The narrow pitch meant that space was at a premium for the wide men however an excellent run on the right wing from Ross Maitland in the thirty second minute resulted in a corner kick from which Ross found the head of Allan Mackay. Allan got up well ahead of Ben Mills and Finnart skipper Steven Wilson but couldn't direct his header on target sending it several feet over the crossbar. Three minutes later Finnart's left back Andrew Robertson joined his opposite number in the Referee's note book for dissent after complaining too long about the award of a free kick for a foul on Dean Smith thirty five yards from goal. Ross Maitland floated in the free kick from the right aiming for the back post where Brian Paton, who was struggling with a knee injury, claimed the ball but failed to gather it cleanly dropping the ball inside the six yard box. After what seemed like an eternity Steven Wilson assumed responsibility and thumped the ball out for a throw-in to Saints. Donald Campbell took the throw-in from the left which Allan Mackay flicked on at the near post to the waiting Ross Maitland who reacted quicker than his marker Ben Mills to prod the ball home from six yards to once again bring Saints back to just one goal behind. There was no further scoring in the first forty five minutes but the feeling in the Saints camp was that they were creating plenty chances and the second goal should give them a platform to build upon in the second half.

Saints were quickly out the traps for the second forty five and straight from the kick off Donald Campbell strode forward holding off several challenges before curling a right foot shot from the edge of the D inches wide of the junction of post and crossbar. More good build up play followed on the left wing with Scott Maitland setting up Dean Smith for a shot on goal from eighteen yards which Finnart keeper Brian Paton was relieved to see hit the side netting. Finnart had their best opportunity of the second half in the fiftieth minute when Saints failed to clear a throw-in from the Finnart left with the ball dropping kindly in the box for Ryan McLean who, much to the relief of the Saints contingent, fired his shoot well over the cross-bar. Saints continued their good approach play with Ross Maitland and David McArthur combining well on the right for Ross to send in a deep cross which Philip McCabe headed behind at the back post for a corner kick. Scott Maitland's out-swinger from the left was well met by the head of Allan Mackay but disappointingly Allan failed to work the keeper and sent his header wide of target. Despite Saints having the majority of the play Finnart still looked dangerous on the counter attack and Saints had to rely on the pace of Marc Maccallum to close down a break from Ryan McLean. The Saints skipper held up McLean's run with the Finnart striker laying the ball off to Steven Wilson who shot tamely wide of Thomas McCulloch's left hand post. Manager Alex Craik made his only change of the afternoon in the fifty eighth minute withdrawing David MacArthur, who had been struggling with a sore back, and replacing him with new signing Craig Campbell. Craig returns to the club following the unfortunate demise of Oban Athletic and will be a valuable addition to the squad for the title and Jimmy Marshall Trophy run-in. Referee Mccart had his notebook out again in the fifty ninth minute taking the name of Finnart's Kieren Malloy for a foul on Dean Smith thirty six yards from goal. Ross Maitland sent in the free kick which was met on the penalty spot by a glancing header from Donald Campbell which flashed inches wide of the base of Brian Paton's left hand post. Saints kept up the pressure and came within inches of unlocking the Finnart defence in the sixty first minute when Allan Mackay burst through the inside right channel and played a first time pass looking for Donald Campbell in the middle but Phillip McCabe got back in the nick of time to make a crucial interception on the eighteen yard line. Moments later Donald was breaking through the middle again this time with the ball at his feet where, after showing good perseverance to battle his way through a cluster of players, he got his shot away but with insufficient power to trouble the keeper. The woodwork came to the home side's rescue in the sixty eighth minute after Ross Maitland again made good ground on the right. Phillip McCabe got across well to halt the wee man's run at the expense of a throw-in. Saints had profited from a similar situation in the first half and very nearly repeated the trick when Craig Campbell flicked on namesake Donald's throw-in to the back post where an under pressure Dougal Graham stabbed out a foot but only succeeded in turning the ball onto the cross bar with the home defence scrambling the loose ball behind for a corner kick. Frustratingly Ross Maitland's in-swinging corner kick from the left was too close to keeper Brian Paton who gathered safely at the second attempt. Steven Wilson became the third Finnart name in Mr Mccart's notebook for a foul on Scott Maitland. From the resultant free kick Dean Smith made a good run to get on the end of Ross Maitland's cross but was denied when Brian Paton made a terrific diving save to make a clean catch from Dean's well directed header. With Saints doing all the pressing there was a moment's relief for the home defence when Andrew Forrest broke away on the right and ran two thirds of the length of the pitch before squaring the ball looking for Ryan McLean only for Craig Campbell to come across and make a timely interception to cut out the danger. With fifteen minutes remaining Saints midfield anchorman Keith Millar joined the attack to good effect working a one-two with Donald Campbell to open up the Finnart defence for Ross Maitland who was thwarted just as he was about to pull the trigger by a last ditch saving tackle by Andrew Robertson. There was a definite feeling on the sidelines that it just wasn't going to be Saints day as first Allan Mackay and then Donald Campbell squandered good chances which nine times out of ten they would have gobbled up. Good work on the left from Scott Maitland and Dean Smith set up Allan in the box but he delayed too long allowing Brian Paton to narrow the angle and smother Allan's tame shot with a frustrated Donald Campbell screaming for a square pass and an easy tap-in. Another good move on the left gave Donald a shooting chance but his effort was straight down the Brian Paton's throat when anything either side would have given the keeper severe problems. Thomas Robertson had his name added to the list of sinners in the eighty second minute for a foul on Donald Campbell thirty yards from goal. With dead ball specialist Willie Gemmell on holiday Donald assumed responsibility for the kick but couldn't keep his dipping effort down sending it two feet over the crossbar. Saints kept the pressure on and were eventually rewarded for their persistence with just six minutes remaining. Finnart repelled yet another Saints attack but only as far as the half way line where Marc Maccallum won a foot race with Ryan McLean to swing in a deep cross from the right to the corner of the Finnart box where both Allan Mackay and Craig Campbell made well timed runs to beat the Finnart offside trap. Craig calmly chested the ball down and volleyed into the bottom corner of the net past Brian Paton's despairing dive to mark a memorable debut with a vital goal. Finnart appealed for an offside decision but Referee Mccart, who handled just his fourth Premier Division match well, remained unmoved and booked central defender Phillip McCabe for his continued protests. Despite there being plenty of time left and a few other close shaves for the Finnart defence Saints were unable to conjure up a winning goal and were left to reflect ruefully on a string of missed chances.

At the final whistle there was a sense of disappointment that Saints hadn't managed to turn their second half domination into more goals however, given Finnart's recent excellent results against St Joseph's FP and Goldenhill, a share of the points from this tricky away fixture is by no means a bad result.