Winning In The Rain: Beaten By The Drum

Saturday 12th November 2016
Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division
Drumchapel Amateurs Colts 2 - 1 Oban Saints AFC
Scotstoun Sports Campus
112 Danes Drive
Glasgow
G14 9HY
Kick off 2pm

Referee Mr Gordon Kelso

Two perfectly executed free kicks and a stoppage time penalty save consigned Saints to a second consecutive away league defeat at Scotstoun Sports Campus last Saturday afternoon. Hosts Drumchapel Amateurs Colts quickly cancelled out Paul Carmichael's fifth minute opener and completed the turnaround two minutes into the second half before successfully shutting up shop to repel a second half Saints onslaught.

Injuries once again forced Manager Alex Craik to ring the changes with Jamie Graham and Paul Kerr dropping out from the squad which squeezed past FC Clydebank in the Scottish Amateur Cup the week previous however the Gaffer was able to add Donald Campbell, Dougal Graham and Scott Maitland to the travelling party. Saints lined up with Thomas McCulloch in goal; a back four of Matthew Kelly, Captain Marc Maccallum, Dene Cassells and David McArthur; a midfield of Brian Mackay, Paul Carmichael, Willie Gemmell and Scott Maitland; and a strike partnership of Dean Smith and Craig MacEwan. On the bench were Donald Campbell, Dougal Graham, Ross Maitland and Fraser MacFarlane.

With Drumchapel's normal home turf of Glenhead, Duntocher unavailable the venue was switched to the excellent, if slightly short and narrow, 4G surface at Scotstoun. Saints got proceedings under way playing into the bright low sun and opened the scoring after just five minutes. Paul Carmichael pushed forward from midfield and won a throw in on the right. Dean Smith collected the throw in and fed Brian Mackay who slipped a perfectly weighted through ball for Paul Carmichael. Paul's well timed run left the Colts back four appealing in vain for offside and from a tight angle the Saints man rifled a shot across keeper Scott Urquhart and in off the inside of the far post.

The home side came roaring back forcing Thomas McCulloch to tip over a Josh White shot from twenty five yards. From the resulting corner Joseph Preston climbed above David McArthur but sent his header a foot over the crossbar. Paul Carmichael was harshly penalised for an eleventh minute challenge on Scott Peters just inside the Colts half and to add insult to injury Referee Mr Kelso then produced the first of a flurry of yellow cards which threatened to ruin a full blooded but sporting encounter between two fully committed teams. The free kick was knocked up to the edge of the Saints box by Scott Fitzpatrick where David McArthur was deemed to have impeded Joseph Preston and also found his way into Mr Kelso's notebook. Drum skipper Matthew Armstrong lined up the free kick from twenty six yards and expertly lifted the ball over the four man Saints wall and into the bottom corner past Thomas McCulloch's despairing right hand. Saints threatened to hit back in the fifteenth minute from a free kick won by Scott Maitland just inside the Drum half. Willie Gemmell played the ball up to Craig MacEwan on the left of the box. Craig tricked his way past Scott Fitzpatrick and sent a low cross into the danger area where Brian Mackay had made a good run. Unfortunately Brian's finish didn't match the quality of his run and his scuffed effort was easily fielded by Scott Urquhart. Drumchapel full backs Scott Fitzpatrick and Greg Cross were looking to push forward to join the attack at every opportunity with opposite numbers Matthew Kelly and David McArthur only too keen to reciprocate. In the twenty third minute McArthur was inches away from connecting at the back post with a good deep cross from Kelly on the right. Another adventurous run from Kelly drew a foul thirty two yards from goal in the thirty fourth minute. From eight yards in from the right touchline Willie Gemmell aimed for the inside of the near post but only succeeded in finding the side netting. Joseph Preston became the first of the home side to fall foul of the card happy Referee for a thirty fifth minute foul on Craig MacEwan. Willie Gemmell again took responsibility for the set-piece but couldn't pick out either Dene Cassells or Craig MacEwan with a lofted ball to the back post with Scott Urquhart making a good catch. As the half wore on Saints seemed to lose their way handing the initiative to the home side. Marc Maccallum produced a perfectly timed last ditch challenge to halt Joseph Preston's run into the box in the forty second minute. Mr Kelso dismissed loud penalty claims from the Colts players instead pointing to the corner flag. Saints couldn't fully clear the danger from the corner kick and conceded another free kick in an identical position to where Matthew Armstrong had previously found the net. Robert Bell assumed responsibility on this occasion but sent his effort straight at Thomas McCulloch who gathered comfortably. The Colts maintained the upper hand right up to the half time whistle drawing a fine diving save from Thomas McCulloch in the forty fourth minute to deny Joseph Preston.

The second half began in disastrous fashion for Saints with a highly controversial decision from Mr Kelso at the heart of it. Paul Carmichael was penalised for a shirt tug which only Mr Kelso saw. While Mr Kelso was lecturing Donald Campbell and Peter MacCallum on the touchline for disputing his decision Robert Bell stole a couple of yards which heightened the sense of injustice in the Saints camp. Bell emulated the feat of Matthew Armstrong in the first half and lifted the ball expertly up and over the wall leaving Thomas McCulloch too much ground to make up to his left giving the home side the lead. To rub salt into the wound Saints skipper Marc Maccallum was added to the growing list of cautions for continuing his protestations too long for the Referee's liking.

Wounded by this reverse Saints finally took the game by the scruff of the neck and piled forward in search of an equaliser. Scott Maitland rifled in a shot from twenty five yards which was blocked behind for a corner kick. Matthew Kelly's delivery from the right was cleared but only as far as Brian Mackay who returned the ball to the danger area where Paul Carmichael's knock down was met by Dean Smith whose net bound effort was blocked by Sunil Chatterjee. Smith tried again in the fifty sixth minute slicing a spectacular attampted bicycle kick from a Craig MacEwan right wing cross off target. This proved to be Dean's last involvement as he and David McArthur made way for Donald Campbell and Dougal Graham.

Saints kept up the pressure on the Colts defence and had two penalty kick appeals in quick succession dismissed by Mr Kelso. Firstly Paul Carmichael appeared to be felled from behind giving the Referee a very close decision to make. Secondly Donald Campbell went down too easily in the Referee's opinion earning the Saints substitute a yellow card for simulation. On the sixty minute mark Willie Gemmell stung the palms of Colts keeper Scott Urquhart with a thirty yard pile driver. The shot was too hot to handle but the loose ball fell short of the onrushing Craig MacEwan allowing the keeper to gather at the second attempt. The Colts were defending in depth with only Joseph Preston left up front to fight for the long ball from the back. In the sixty sixth minute Matthew Kelly intercepted one such long ball with a well timed header to launch another Saints attack. Donald Campbell, Willie Gemmell and Craig MacEwan combined well for Craig to pick out Paul Carmichael's run into the box. Paul held off a challenge from Greg Cross and from six yards left Scott Urquhart rooted to the spot only to see his first time effort slip agonisingly wide of the keeper's right hand post. The Saints onslaught continued with a backpedaling Urquhart showing safe hands to gather a looping Willie Gemmell effort under his crossbar. In the seventy seventh minute Dene Cassells flashed a header over the Colts crossbar from a Willie Gemmell free kick after Craig MacEwan had been fouled ten yards inside the Colts half. A driving run into the box from Donald Campbell in the seventy eighth minute was met by a vital interception by Sunil Chaterjee at the expense of a corner kick. Before the action could re-start Manager Alex Craik made his third and final change bringing on Ross Maitland to replace Brian Mackay. The first involvement for Ross was to take the corner kick from the right but his delivery was headed clear at the near post by Greg Cross. Ross fared better with a cross on the run one minute later picking out Paul Carmichael in the middle whose header flew wide of the keeper's left hand post. The wee man was in the thick of the action again in the eighty first minute having a header from a Willie Gemmell free kick tipped over the crossbar by Scott Urquhart. Kicking the ball away at a throw-in and talking back to the Referee at a free kick saw Sunil Chaterjee and Josh White join the ever expanding list of cautions in the eighty fourth and eighty fifth minutes respectively. Ross Maitland once again got the better of Greg Cross on the right wing and sent in an inviting ball for Donald Campbell who saw his effort from ten yards well saved by Scott Urquhart. With so many yellow cards in the game it was perhaps inevitable that somebody would see red and that dubious honour fell to Joseph Preston for, in Mr Kelso's opinion, a second yellow card offence in the eighty eighth minute. Saints continued their bombardment of the home goal into the four added minutes and looked to have secured the slice of luck they required to break down the stuffy Drum defence when Donald Campbell was pulled back in the process of shooting in the box. Mr Kelso immediately pointed to the penalty spot and took the name of Scott Urquhart for vehemently disputing the decision. The Drum keeper however regained his composure making an excellent diving save to his right to keep out Donald Campbell's spot kick and deny Saints a deserved share of the points.