Match Report
As expected, Clydebank progressed to the second round of the South Challenge Cup by defeating East of Scotland Second Division outfit Stoneyburn at Beechwood Park this afternoon.
Gordon Moffat made full use of his squad by making eight changes to his starting line-up from the side that hammered Hibs B on Tuesday night. The result was a no more than satisfactory performance against a side several levels below us in the pyramid.
New loan signing Lyle Hunter went straight into defence, while Kilmarnock youngster Kian Leslie was given a start after a late cameo in midweek. The other new face, Szymon Walczak from Airdrie, was on the bench after being given an hour against Hibs during the week.
At this same stage of the competition last season, the Bankies took eleven goals off Inverkeithing, who share a division with Stoneyburn, but that was never really on the cards today. For two brief minutes it looked like it was going to be a stroll in the park, as the Bankies forced two early corners and the home defence looked vulnerable, but Clydebank were in for a shock.
From the second corner, the ball was cleared upfield to Blair Nelson, who won the ball and found Harry Brash in the centre circle. Nelson made a forward run into the left channel and Brash returned the favour with a great pass. Nelson outpaced the Clydebank defence and prodded the ball past the exposed Stott to give his team the lead.
Nelson was my pick of the Stoneyburn players. The Fulshie didn’t venture into the Clydebank half too often, but when they did, Nelson looked to be the one player with a bit about him who could cause problems.
For the Bankies, the key was not to let this setback affect us, and to make sure that we stayed disciplined. The goals would come as the game unfolded.
This actually proved trickier than expected, and of the three goals we finally did score, two came from the penalty spot. The frustrating thing for me is that we too often tried to walk the ball into the net, and once more we weren’t moving the ball quickly enough to get the Stoneyburn defence off balance.
We may have had several shots on goal, but how many saves did McQuillan really have to make? We were playing with two strikers, one of whom is the best header of the ball in non-league football and the other who chases lost causes for fun, but rarely did we attempt to play direct.
This is where the absence of David Syme is being felt. He is the one defender in the Bankies ranks who will play the long ball over the top or go direct to the target man. Stoneyburn’s defence can claim that they kept Samson and Mulcahy quiet, but we never played to their strengths, especially on such a wide pitch, which was just asking to be exploited in this way.
The Bankies’ equaliser came after twelve minutes from the penalty spot after Leslie was fouled by Brady as he was first to the ball in the box. It was one of those that looked like a penalty at the time but was maybe a bit soft in hindsight. In saying that, there were no complaints from the defender. Nicky Low dug the ball out of the penalty crater, I mean spot, to draw the sides level.
The rest of the half was one-way traffic towards the Stoneyburn goal, but the Bankies singularly failed to trouble McQuillan. Josh Jack fired a couple of free-kicks off target, and Mulcahy headed a near-post cross over the bar, but that was about it. The loss of Nicky Low just before the break was another problem we could do without, but hopefully it was more precautionary than anything more worrying.
The second half brought renewed purpose, and decent efforts from Mulcahy and Leslie were the precursor for the second goal, which came after 51 minutes. From a cleared cross, Cairns nodded the ball into the penalty box, where it was helped on by Josh Jack. The ball carried through to Keir Samson, who guided it home from eight yards.
The expectant Clydebank support waited for the players to put the game to bed in style, but it just never happened. The advantage was widened after 65 minutes, but again it came from the penalty spot. A through ball was chased into the box by Leslie and, as he tried to cut across Salmon, the defender barged the Bankies winger to the ground.
Nicky Little made amends for his penalty miss last week by stroking the ball into the net.
As the game opened up towards the end, a few more chances came Clydebank’s way, but Cairns, Samson and Little couldn’t get the ball on target to force a save from the Stoneyburn keeper. The closest was a deflected shot from Walczak which almost crept in at the far post.
Without being disrespectful to Stoneyburn, the scoreline in games like these is generally about how well we play. Over the past few years, we have been ruthless in a number of early-round cup ties, but we just didn’t quite get it right today. We did enough, but no more.
In terms of performances, all of the new players are worth another look. Until they are tested against tougher opposition, we will have to reserve judgment. Leslie looked useful on the wing, Hunter can be happy with his day’s work, and Walczak has been assured in his two games.
The Bankies line-up will be back to its strongest as we visit Caley Braves on Tuesday. We were sent packing from Alliance Park with our tails between our legs last season. It must not be allowed to happen again.
Match report written by Stuart McBay
