Clydebank 2
Cambuslang R 0
League (WoSFL Premier)

Match Report

You can file this one under “Routine”, as The Bankies took care of bottom placed Cambuslang Rangers with a minimum of fuss without ever really getting out of second gear.

Cambuslang had the look of an already relegated side, and Gordon Moffat’s side never really hit the heights of recent weeks, but didn’t really have to as the visitors barely posed a threat throughout. A goalbound shot from Ben Richford in the 87th minute which brought out a fine save from Jamie Donnelly was their only shot on target in the 90 minutes.

The only real nervousness was the slender lead the Bankies held, but any fears were dispelled when Alan Kelly scored his second goal of the day, which to all intents and purposes secured the three points.

It wasn’t a great game to be honest, but Clydebank more or less were always in control especially after scoring fairly early on in the match. The goal came from the ever-improving Alan Kelly who has now netted in three consecutive games.

The winger must be one of the first names on the teamsheet at the moment and it was his fancy footwork that created the goal. He worked the ball inside to Nicky Little and he broke beyond the defensive line to receive the return pass.

Cambuslang have good cause to be upset as Kelly was in an offside position as he ran on to Little’s pass. Undeterred, Kelly smashed the ball high into the net beyond Wilson in the Cambuslang goal. There was no movement from the linesman and the Bankies were not complaining as the ref pointed to the centre spot, awarding a goal.

There wasn’t much in the way of other clear cut chances in the first half. The best one was once again from Kelly just five minutes after the goal. From 25 yards out, he moved the ball onto his right foot and sent in a fantastic shot which beat the diving Wilson, only for the ball to go past the wrong side of the post.

It took the Bankies a while to get going in the second half, but when the first chance came it should have been a goal. Gallacher supplied the low cross to the six yard box for the incoming Higgins, but the striker made a poor connection and the keeper was able to save.

After a couple more half chances the Bankies extended the lead after 65 minutes. It came from a well worked corner kick. The ball was rolled into the near post area for Nicky Little who smacked his shot off the inside of the post. The rebound was kind as it fell for Kelly, and he first timed the ball into the next for six yards out. This was Kelly’s fourth goal in three games and handed the Bankies their seventh win on the trot.

The winger could have grabbed himself a hat trick as a low cross into the penalty box from the right wing was cleverly dummied by Nicky Little. Kelly had the whole goal to aim for, but he was unable to convert his shot.

Kelly was rightly awarded the man of the match award as he was the brightest star on an otherwise fairly uninspiring day. Moffat even had the luxury of taking off Kelly and Little towards the end as there was no real prospect of Cambuslang getting back into the game.

The Bankies couldn’t be in much better form heading into possibly the most important match of the season against giant-killing Darvel on Wednesday. The big-spending Ayrshire side are favourites for the title but the Bankies can move up to third place if they can get a result, and will place themselves firmly in the title race.

Next weekend is a trip to Maybole in the South Challenge Cup. The Bankies haven’t been to Ladywell Stadium for over seven years, and is a big opportunity to go deep in the biggest cup competition for non-league clubs.

Match report written by Stuart McBay