Glenrothes 3-0 Lochmaben
SFA Challenge Cup 2nd Round
Warout Stadium, Glenrothes
Glenrothes disposed of Lochmaben to progress into round three of the Challenge Cup in this East v South clash. Goals from Andrew McDonald, Connor Schiavone and Scott Russell were enough for the East Of Scotland Football League’s newest side to see off the South Of Scotland League team.
The Warout Stadium is a huge piece of real estate, but with a disappointing turn out, the place had a bit of a deserted feel to it as the sides took to the field. Glenrothes were quickest to get into their stride, taking the game to the visitors right from the whistle. The quick ball into the front men seemed like their best chance for success, but the Lochmaben defence were keeping things tight and didn’t look like giving much away. John Martin was proving to be a bit of a handful for the visiting defence, always available for the quick ball out of midfield.
In truth, it was pretty much one-way traffic for most of the first half, Glens doing all the pressing and Lochmaben on the back foot. Much of the game was played in midfield, but Glens looked most dangerous when they got the ball into wide areas, exploiting the width of the big pitch. It was only the delivery into the box that was letting the home side down as Glens enjoyed the lion’s share of possession without troubling the keeper too much in a fairly uneventful opening forty-five.
Glens were awarded an indirect free kick in the box when the keeper was judged to have played the ball then picked it up again, but the home side couldn’t take advantage. Lane should have opened the scoring on 38 minutes after he side-stepped the keeper, but a last gasp lunge from the defender managed to turn the shot behind for a corner. The opener came within sight of the half-time whistle, McDonald jumping highest to convert the corner kick and give the home side the lead they deserved at the break.
It was more of the same after the interval, Glens enjoying most of the pressure, with Lochmaben grafting hard to keep the hosts at bay. Glens doubled their lead on 55 minutes, Schiavone picking up possession with his back to goal in the penalty area. It looked like he was ready to cut it back but with no support arriving, he turned his man and clipped a cute finish into the top corner.
Glens were forced into a substitution shortly afterwards, Lane limping off after being clattered in a heavy challenge, to be replaced by Scott Russell. Martin was still proving to the man to watch in the Glens attack and went close with an acrobatic effort from the tightest of angles that forced a good save from the visiting goalie. Russell got number three on 65 minutes, Martin’s effort blocked by the keeper and breaking to the sub, who took his time and fired back across goal into the far corner.
It was only now that the visitors seemed to come to life, making a couple of substitutions of their own and finally managing a decent spell of possession. It’s a long old trip to Fife for Lochmaben and they will have been pretty disappointed at how little they offered as an attacking threat, taking well over an hour to get a meaningful shot at goal. The visitors finished strongly, but never really looked like getting themselves back into it, leaving it far too late to offer any kind of threat and Glens held on to make it comfortably into the draw for round three. The Fifers probably could have had a few more but seemed to be missing that wee bit of quality in the final third to take full advantage.
Ref Watch: It was a pretty routine match for Scott Downie, uneventful for long spells with few real flash points for him to deal with. Glens had a couple of half-hearted penalty shouts in the first half, but Downie didn’t want to know and there was nothing too contentious about any of his decisions.
Man of the Match:
With the visitors offering next to nothing in the attacking third, it was always going to be somebody in red that got the nod. John Martin was always the danger man for the home side. His powerful runs made life difficult for the defence and with the physical presence to mix it up, he was a real handful all afternoon.
See all the match photos HERE