Winning In The Rain: Sixes and Sevens

Saturday 21st April 2018
Scottish Amateur Football League
Premier Division
East Kilbride Rolls Royce v Oban Saints
Kirktonholme Recreation Area
Kirkton Gate
West Mains Road
East Kilbride
G74 1NF
Kick off 1.15pm
Referee Mr Decio Espinha

With their dreams of a Scottish Amateur Cup Final appearance at Hampden Park on 20th May ended, Oban Saints can now concentrate their attentions fully on what remains of their Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division campaign. The first of the seven fixtures to be fitted in before the end of the season comes this Saturday afternoon at the Murray against East Kilbride Rolls Royce. The Rolly currently sit in sixth place in the Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division, one point better off than Saints but with one game more played.

Despite having just pride left to play for, Saints and the Rolly can yet have a major influence on who ends up being crowned Premier Division Champions. Both have yet to play main title challengers Alba Thistle, St Joseph's FP and Goldenhill with Saints also having to travel to outsiders Motherwell Thistle.

If the Scottish Amateur Cup tie in January is anything to go by, Saturday's match should be a another entertaining encounter with both sides striving for points to finish as high up the league table as possible.

Saints last league visit to East Kilbride to face the Rolly in May 2016 ended in a 3 - 1 Saints victory which sadly consigned the home side to a second relegation in four seasons. First half goals from Craig Campbell and Scott Maitland were added to by Dean Smith effectively killing off the match after twelve second half minutes. The Rolly however battled on manfully and eventually earned a deserved consolation fourteen minutes from full-time through substitute Andrew Woods.

The Rolly's latest spell in Premier Division One lasted just one season where a successful league campaign secured an immediate return to the top flight finishing as runners-up to Champions Alba Thistle.

Back in the Premier Division for the 2017-18 season, the Rolly endured a difficult start with back to back defeats against two of this season's title contenders Goldenhill and Motherwell Thistle. However a local derby share of the points with 2015-16 Champions East Kilbride FC Amateurs kick started their campaign taking maximum points from the next two fixtures away at Hillington and Inverclyde which sees the Rolly currently in seventh place in the league table with seven points, one point better off than eighth placed Saints and with one game less played.

Scottish Amateur Football League Centenary Cup

The Rolly's slow start to the season cost them any chance of progression in the Scottish Amateur Football League Centenary Cup finishing in third place in Group Section South 3 behind Premier Division One Champions Alba Thistle and local rivals Claremont.

Scottish Amateur Cup

The early stages of the major cup competitions fortunately coincided with a return to form for the Rolly which now saw them paired with Saints in the Scottish Amateur Cup fifth round. After receiving a first round bye the Rolly put past twelve past newly formed Newmains Hammers of Strathclyde Saturday Morning Amateur Football League Division 1B before a comfortable win away from home at Stirling and District Amateur Football Association Division 1A leaders Braehead. In the fourth round it was an all Scottish Amateur Football League clash against reigning Premier Division Champions St Joseph's with the Rolly raising a few eyebrows with a very impressive 2 - 1 away win after a 2 - 2 home draw in East Kilbride.

The fifth round tie between the Rolly and Saints was another weather delayed affair with the Rolly compelled to move the tie from East Kilbride to Holytown just to find an available playable surface. The change of surroundings didn't seem to affect the Rolly too badly as they soaked up Saints early pressure and raced into a two goal lead thanks to a double from centre forward Andrew Cunningham.

The second goal proved to be just the wake up call that Saints were desperately in need of and within three minutes of the restart Scott Maitland pulled one back. Linking up with Craig MacEwan and Donald Campbell, Maitland cut in from the left and placed a curling right foot finish across Conor Flanagan and into the bottom corner of the net.

Maitland doubled his tally just two minutes into the second half finishing off a driving run by Matthew Kelly. Saints completed the turnaround when Myles McAuley bagged his second goal of the competition adding to his fourth round replay strike against Greenock High School Former Pupils with a neat curled finish from a Daniel MacCuish through ball.

Craig MacEwan rounded off the scoring in the seventy seventh minute to book Saints place in the sixth round and a fourth successive away trip this time to Ayrshire to face Kilbride Thistle

West of Scotland Amateur Cup

In the West of Scotland Cup the Rolly were unfortunate to come up against 2014 Cup Winners and reigning Ayrshire Amateur Football Association Premier League Champions Hurlford Thistle in round four with the Ayrshire men coming out on top in a nine goal thriller. Prior to that the Rolly had dished out a hammering to recently formed Harestanes United of Stirling and District Amateur Football Association Division 1A in the second round followed by a closer victory by the odd goal in three over Helensburgh of Greater Glasgow Premier League Division Three.

Scottish Amateur Football League Jimmy Marshall Trophy

The Rolly enjoyed their best run of the season so far in February and March. Following encouraging performances in league defeats against Motherwell Thistle and St Joseph's FP, they embarked upon a four match winning streak with league victories over Hillington and local rivals East Kilbride FC Amateurs complementing Jimmy Marshall Trophy successes against Rossvale Amateurs and Port Glasgow OBU. Unfortunately for the Rolly any hopes of an extended run in the Scottish Amateur Football League's top cup competition were extinguished at the fourth round stage when they ran into Premier Division One title chasers Rutherglen. A hat-trick at Hamilton Palace from Steven Bell helped Rutherglen, who need five wins from their remaining five fixtures to clinch the Premier Division One crown, to a 5 - 1 victory over the Rolly and a place in the semi-finals.

East Kilbride Rolls Royce results so far this season:-

Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division

19th August 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 0 - 4 Goldenhill
26th August 2017 Motherwell Thistle 1 - 0 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
9th September 2017 East Kilbride FC Amateurs 1 - 1 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
11th November 2017 Hillington 1 - 3 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
25th November 2017 Inverclyde 0 - 1 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
3rd February 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 4 Motherwell Thistle
10th February 2018 St Joseph's FP 5 - 3 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
17th February 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 3 - 1 Hillington
10th March 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 3 - 2 East Kilbride FC Amateurs
14th April 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 1 - 4 Inverclyde
21st April 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce v Oban Saints

Scottish Amateur Football League Jimmy Marshall Trophy

1st Round
Bye

2nd Round
24th February 2018 Rossvale Amateurs 1 - 5 East Kilbride Rolls Royce

3rd Round
17th March 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 3 - 1 Port Glasgow OBU

4th Round
7th April 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 1 - 5 Rutherglen

Scottish Amateur Football League Centenary Cup

1st Round - Group Section South 3

16th August 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 1 - 1 Alba Thistle
23rd August 2017 Claremont 1 - 0 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
7th October 2017 Easthall Star 2 - 2 East Kilbride Rolls Royce

Scottish Amateur Cup

1st Round
Bye

2nd Round
30th September 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 12 - 1 Newmains Hammers

3rd Round
4th November 2017 Braehead 1 - 4 East Kilbride Rolls Royce

4th Round
16th December 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 2 St Joseph's FP

4th Round Replay
6th January 2018 St Joseph's FP 1 - 2 East Kilbride Rolls Royce

5th Round
27th January 2018 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 4 Oban Saints

West of Scotland Amateur Cup

1st Round
Bye

2nd Round
16th September 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 9 - 1 Harestanes United

3rd Round
28th October 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 1 Helensburgh

4th Round
18th November 2017 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 3 - 6 Hurlford Thistle

East Kilbride Rolls Royce recent Scottish Amateur Football League record:-

2006 - 07 Premier Division Two 7th
2007 - 08 Premier Division Two 4th
2008 - 09 Premier Division Two 4th and Centenary Cup Runner Up
2009 - 10 Premier Division Two Champions Promoted
2010 - 11 Premier Division One 2nd Promoted and Jimmy Marshall Trophy Runner Up
2011 - 12 Premier Division 4th
2012 - 13 Premier Division 9th Relegated
2013 - 14 Premier Division One 7th
2014 - 15 Premier Division One 3rd Promoted
2015 - 16 Premier Division 10th Relegated
2016 - 17 Premier Division One 2nd Promoted

Saints SAFL Premier Division record v East Kilbride Rolls Royce in recent seasons:-

14th April 2012 Oban Saints 5 - 1 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
26th May 2012 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 1 Oban Saints
27th April 2013 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 2 - 2 Oban Saints
12th May 2013 Oban Saints 1 - 1 East Kilbride Rolls Royce

23rd January 2016 Oban Saints 2 - 1 East Kilbride Rolls Royce
7th May 2016 East Kilbride Rolls Royce 1 - 3 Oban Saints