Blantyre Vics created Scottish Junior Cup history

Feb 17 2011 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

BLANTYRE Vics created history on Saturday by staging the first Scottish Junior Cup tie to be played indoors – only to be floored by Broughty Athletic’s late winner.

A tenth attempt to play the third-round fixture seemed doomed when a flooded Castle Park was ruled unplayable at 8am on Saturday – but a contingency plan was put in place and the fixture was moved to the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell.

Set against a strangely subdued environment, Vics started brightly, with James Whyte going close with a third-minute shot.

Andy Dorrans then went close with a drive, before Whyte sent a header over the bar.

On the half-hour mark, James Miller cut in to send a low shot whizzing past the far post before Paul Mallon swept a Colin Boylan pass beyond the keeper, but wide of the post.

Vics were made to pay for those misses three minutes from the break when Graeme Daly reacted fastest in a goalmouth scramble to put Broughty in front.

Vics started the second half in the same manner as they did the first and were rewarded when substitute Ross Fletcher went on a fantastic solo run before slamming the ball into the back of the net to level in 66 minutes.

Boylan, Fletcher and Mallon then all had shots blocked or saved, and all three also put efforts just wide of goal.

But, as the game drifted into the second minute of stoppage time, Brian Craik scrambled the ball over the line for Broughty to leave Blantyre heartbroken.

Vics boss Ian Rankin (below) said: “Overall, I thought we did well. The players worked extremely hard and were spreading the ball about well.

“I thought we were coming right into the game late on and might have got a goal – but then we were hit by a real sucker-punch.

“It was a fantastic game and I couldn’t have asked for any more from my guys.

“Ross Fletcher showed what he is capable of – he was like a new player – coming back after a long spell out injured. He thoroughly deserved his goal.

“And in Andy Dorrans and Colin Boylan, I would say that, on their game, they are probably the best midfield pairing in this division – they are first-class.”

The game also marked a first for county referee Scott Love, who had to encounter a few incidents which he is unlikely to experience in a routine outdoor game.

On at least four occasions a high clearance saw defenders back-tracking and attackers surging forward – only to be halted when the ball struck one of the high girders and rebounded behind play.