Saturday 27th November 2021

Central Scottish Amateur Football League

Premier Division

Oban Saints 0 - 2 Uddingston Anvil

Glencruitten 2

Mossfield Avenue

Oban

Argyll

PA34 4EH

Kick Off 2.00pm
Referee Mr Ross Stirling

This season's all too familiar story of missed chances and cheaply conceded goals cost Oban Saints three more valuable Central Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division points at Glencruitten last Saturday.

After Saints Skipper Craig MacEwan had put through his own net in the first half, visitors Uddingston Anvil took full advantage of the generosity of their hosts to establish a two goal lead inside the first minute of the second half.

Despite a spirited performance there was no way back for the desperately out of luck Saints who missed a hatful of chances and found Anvil goalkeeper David McKegney in truly inspired form.

Teenage defender Thomas McCrindle was given a starting debut in place of the injured Dene Cassells as Saints made three changes to the starting eleven which had secured progress to the West of Scotland Cup fourth round in their last outing.

Saints lined up with Graham Douglas in goal behind a back three of Steven MacLeod, Willie Gemmell and Thomas McCrindle. Across the five man midfield were Kyle Cooper, Gavin Forgrieve, Matty Kelly, Myles McAuley and Scott Maitland with Daniel MacCuish and Craig MacEwan up front. On the bench were David Beaton, Alex Craik, Cammy Hill, Fraser MacFarlane and Louie MacFarlane.

Oban Saints starting line-up:-

Used substitutes:-

David Beaton

Cammy Hill

Louie MacFarlane

Unused substitutes:-

Alex Craik

Fraser MacFarlane

Attacking the railway line end in the first half the visitors came flying out of the traps and had the ball in the net in the third minute when Christopher Owen's diving header across the face of goal was turned in by Ewan Moyes. Referee Ross Stirling however ruled that Owen had strayed offside to meet Darren Ferguson's free-kick and disallowed the goal.

Daniel MacCuish felt his progress inside the Anvil box in the fourth minute had been unfairly impeded however Mr Stirling dismissed the Saints penalty appeal.

Kyle Cooper saw his tenth minute shot from the edge of the box deflected behind for a corner as Saints looked to have weathered the early Anvil storm.

Cooper did well again on the right two minutes later beating Reece McAuley to reach the bye-line. Cooper's cut back was met by Daniel MacCuish who had his first attempt blocked before sending his second effort on the rebound wide of target.

Saints first self inflicted injury came in the fifteenth minute when Graham Douglas misjudged Darren Ferguson's in-swinging corner kick from the right and Craig MacEwan's attempt to clear the danger ended up in his own net.

A further setback for the home side followed five minutes later when Kyle Cooper rolled his right ankle ending his participation in the game and earning David Beaton an earlier than anticipated call up from the substitutes bench.

Saints front pairing of Craig MacEwan and Daniel MacCuish linked well in the twenty fourth minute with MacCuish teeing up the Skipper for a shot from twenty yards which flew wide of David McKegney's left hand post.

Willie Gemmell's deep fortieth minute free-kick from wide on the right just inside the Anvil half was met by a solid David McKegney punch however Saints kept the pressure on and Craig MacEwan played in Matty Kelly for an effort from a tight angle which bounced agonisingly across the face of goal before being turned behind for a corner kick.

The visitors lost the services of Ross Ferguson to injury just before the interval with Anton Murray entering the fray as his replacement.

The second half began in disastrous fashion for Saints when the visitors capitalised fully on possession gifted to them midway inside the Saints half. Caught in two minds with what to do with the ball Daniel MacCuish only succeeded in clipping the ball into the path of Robert Dimmer who in turn picked out the run of Kieron Markey. The teenage striker raced in behind the Saints back three and made no mistake in beating the advancing Graham Douglas to double the Anvil advantage.

Anvil dead ball expert Darren Ferguson's forty ninth minute free-kick from thirty two yards was well held by Graham Douglas before opposite number David McKegney produced the first of a number of vital saves to deny Daniel MacCuish from Scott Maitland's left wing cross.

Graham Douglas saved a second Darren Ferguson free-kick and launched a fifty third minute Saints counter-attack which took Craig MacEwan into the Anvil box. Cutting in from the left MacEwan's shot across David McKegney beat the Anvil keeper but bounced inches wide of target.

Daniel MacCuish's fifty sixth minute cross field pass looking for the run of Scott Maitland was cut out by the head of Dylan Hendry but only into the path of Craig MacEwan who controlled well but sent his stabbed effort straight into the midriff of McKegney.

Thomas McCrindle, who acquitted himself well on his home debut, was replaced on the hour mark by Cammy Hill in a switch which saw Scott Maitland drop back into the back three.

Anton Murray found his way into Referee Stirling's note book for a late challenge on Cammy Hill wide on the Saints left. Willie Gemmell lifted the resulting free-kick to the far post from where Daniel MacCuish planted his header wide of target.

Saints were getting some joy from Hill's introduction on the left and his inviting sixty fifth minute low cross along the six yard line was put out for throw-in by Anton Murray. Hill got his head to Myles McAuley's throw but his flick-on was too high for Gavin Forgrieve and was claimed by keeper McKegney.

Willie Gemmell's spectacular attempted overhead kick from Gavin Forgrieve's seventy fifth minute free-kick sailed over the crossbar before the visitors made their second and final change sending on Harris Gunn to replace Ruaridh Howat.

Robert Dimmer did well on the right to escape the attentions of Scott Maitland and set up Dylan Hendry for a seventy sixth minute shot just wide of Graham Douglas' left hand post. Two minutes later space opened up for another Hendry shot which Douglas saved comfortably.

Saints kept pushing for the goal which would bring them back into the game and only an excellent save from David McKegney kept the Saints attack at bay. Cammy Hill's eighty third minute cross field run from left to right had the Anvil defence trailing in his wake and his low shot looked certain to find the target until McKegney's intervention at full stretch finger tipped the ball around his right and post.

There was more heroics from McKegney sixty seconds later to deny Craig MacEwan after Matty Kelly and Daniel MacCuish combined to set up the Skipper.

More good work on the left from Cammy Hill saw the big utility man fizz a low cross to Daniel MacCuish who thumped a shot off the left hand upright just as Darren Ferguson crashed into him. Bizarrely Referee Stirling saw nothing wrong with the challenge and allowed play to continue albeit without MacCuish who had to be carried from the field of play.

Cammy Hill joined Craig MacEwan up front for the closing stages with MacCuish's replacement Louie MacFarlane taking up the left wing back position but Saints were unable to test McKegney again and slumped to a sixth league defeat of what is shaping up to be a long and difficult season.