Blairgowrie pay the penalty in GA Cup clash

May 26 2009 by Our Correspondent, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

Blairgowrie 2 Sunnybank 2 (Sunnybank win 4-3 on penalties)

THE GA Engineering Cup Final between Blairgowrie and Sunnybank, which was played at Aberdeen’s Hillside Center, was as a cup final is expected to be – as it was a closely contested encounter which ended all square at 2–2.

The result of course meant that the destination of the cup would have to be settled by a penalty shoot out.

Blair had the winning of the shoot out very much in their own hands but they failed to convert the crucial spot kick that would have won the cup for them.

Sunnybank went on to capitalise on Swifts misfortune, winning the shoot out 4–3 and the Cup in the process.

This final had only been in operation six minutes and two goals had been scored. Blair got the first of those goals.

A cross from Ryan Menzies into the heart of the Sunnybank goalmouth saw Mark Brash jump with the keeper and it obviously distracted him as he fumbled the ball and it fell into the path of John Farquharson who was delighted to crack it into the back of the net to put Blair ahead.

Swifts’ joy, however, was very short-lived as two minutes later Sunnybank were back on level terms.

A ball had been crossed into the Blair penalty box; it did not cause much danger and was about to be cleared until a linesman was seen to flag for a penalty for an alleged hand ball offence against defender Craig Ferguson.

Blair and Craig were certainly non too happy with this decision, whatever the rights or wrongs of it. It did not deter Ricky Somers from dispatching the spot kick into the back of the net.

Play swept from end to end for the rest of the half and while there was plenty of goal mouth activity at both ends, by the time the interval arrived, there were no further goals.

Blair restored their lead in fifty three minutes when Paul Ireland cut in from the right wing and hit a perfectly flighted cross to Jamie Duncan at the far post and Jamie fired it past the keeper from about ten yards. A few minutes later, in another Blair attack John Farquharson picked up a through ball and from the edge of the penalty box his well struck volley brought out a brilliant save from the keeper.

Sunnybank got back on level terms for the second time in the game when a cross from their right wing into the penalty box should have been cleared, but it was not and Sunnybank Nicky Gordon connected with the ball to herd it into the corner of the net to make it 2-2.

Both teams strived hard for the winner. There were a few near things but no further goals.

It was onto the penalty shoot out which proved to be fateful as far as Blair were concerned.

The sponsors’ man of the match award went to Blairgowrie’s midfielder/forward John Farquharson.

In the only other game involving a Perthshire team, Bankfoot were at home to Rosyth in the Central League.

The Bankies had shocked Rosyth when they held them to a 1-1 draw in the corresponding game at Rosyth.

This was a real blow for the Fifers as they were running neck and neck with St Andrews in the race for the championship. At that time, they had eventually to settle for the runners spot.

They took revenge on the Bankies in Saturday’s encounter as they went on to win it by a 3–1 margin.

Rosyth took the lead in the fourteenth minute. A thirty yard drive from their full back Simon Sanaghan was right on target.

Bankies keeper Alan Duncan looked to have dealt with it but the ball broke away from him and it fell to the Fifers striker Charlie Scarbrough who was following up and he promptly did the needful form close range and Rosyth were 1-0 ahead.

Scarbrough had a great chance to increase his sides’s lead in the nineteenth minutes but he shot over the bar when it seemed easier to hit the back of the net.

The Bankies came close to equalise in the twenty second minute when a free kick taken by Gavin Mackie hit the defensive wall and spun out for a corner. This was also taken by Gavin. His inswinging kick deceived the keeper but was cleared off the goal line by a defender.

On the half hour mark, Alan Duncan produced a brilliant blocking save when he stopped a close range shot from Simon Sanaghan from landing in the back of the net with his legs.

A few minutes later it was he Fifers goalkeeper’s turn to produce a terrific save to deny the Bankies an equaliser. A good move between Kenny Hynd and Scott McCabe saw the ball played to Scott who was still around thirty yards from the Fifers’ goal. Scott let go a tremendous volley that looked to be heading for the back of the net until somehow the keeper got to it and touched the ball over the bar.

Bankies started the second half in a more aggressive mood and twice they came close to getting back on level terms. The first of those near things came when Kenny Hynd connected with a corner but his header hit the goalkeeper and was cleared. Minutes later a corner from Gavin Mackie caused a real stramash before it was eventually kicked clear. Rosyth returned to the attack and in the sixty ninth minute, they went 2-0 ahead when Calum Young shot the ball past Allan Duncan from the corner of the penalty box.

Bankies John Mitchell who had come on as a sub came very near to reducing the leeway in seventy minutes when he beat the keeper only to see his shot come back off the post and get cleared. Four minutes later, John was making for the Fifers’ goal when he was brought down in the penalty box.

Scott McCabe took the resultant spot kick. His attempt hit the underside of the bar and the ball was then palmed away by the keeper. It was picked up by Gavin Mackie who fired it across the goalmouth. David Fyffe came running in to connect and fired the ball into the back of the net to make it 20–1.

The Fifers retaliated to this setback and in eighty five minutes they clinched the points with a third goal.

This was cored by Tom O’Brien who was unmarked at a corner which he met with and he rifled the ball past Alan Duncan from fifteen yards.

There was no way back for the Bankies after this goal.

Bankfoot were back in operation last night when they met St Andrews. This was the Bankies final game of the season.