C_18thOCT03

On a sunny if slightly chilly afternoon at Yoker Athletic's Holm Park, it was Blackburn who profited from the first real chance of the game with barely 6 minutes on the clock when good work by Craig Spence down the right wing saw the ball laid back to Kevin Boyd who found Mark CAMPBELL 6 yards out and he controlled the ball on his chest, turned and slammed it past Mehigan to open the scoring. Shortly afterwards a great ball by Brian Smillie found the eager Campbell free on the left but when he cut inside his marker and into the box he failed to get enough power into a cutback intended for Stevie Whiteford and the chance was gone. United were causing the Bankies defence all sorts of problems but it was the homesters who were then gifted an equaliser on 11 minutes when Derek Drummond played a howler of a backpass which was woefully short and allowed MAXWELL to run onto the loose ball and crack a half-volley past Aaron Stalker from just inside the area. Blackburn didn't let this setback affect their rhythm and Campbell shot inches over from the edge of the area before Clydebank hit back with the dangerous Maxwell volleying over the bar from 15 yards. In the 19th minute though Blackburn regained the lead, another looping ball finding Campbell who did well to turn and shoot at Mehigan who contrived to let the ball slip through his hands and inches past for a corner. Boyd whipped in a cross from the resulting kick and after a scramble the ball was cleared only as far as the waiting DRUMMOND who shot through a forest of legs and into the back of the net from just inside the area to make amends for his earlier mistake. The Bankies then roared back, Hailstones shooting narrowly past from a good position before Maxwell looped a header over the bar. It was Maxwell who again threatened when he then swung in a dangerous free kick which a nervous looking Stalker fumbled onto a post and behind. The equaliser, however, wasn't long in coming and in the 38th minute a Maxwell corner found STANLEY whose near post glancing header gave Stalker no chance. Just before the break a Darren Malloy free kick was knocked back across goals by Spence but Campbell headed inches over.

Unsurprisingly, the second half failed to live up to the first and it wasn't until the 64th minute that the first clear opportunity was fashioned, and it was a controversial one at that. A through ball found Campbell free around the penalty spot area and he flicked the ball over Mehigan's head, but before he could run onto it to score the home 'keeper flattened him, catching the striker in the groin with his raised boot. Inexplicably the referee awarded a free-kick to Clydebank, accusing Campbell of diving as he was helped off for treatment, centre-half Davie Smyth being booked for dissent over the nature of the decision. Even the Bankies fans couldn't believe their luck. Blackburn picked themselves up from this disappointment and Whiteford just failed to get his head to a Drummond cut back. McGhie was played in after 74 minutes for the first Clydebank chance of the half but before he could control the ball and run in on Stalker he was closed down by the retreating Blackburn defence. With 8 minutes left of regulation time Campbell nearly profited on a poor Prior pass back but Mehigan gratefully clutched the ball. Maxwell then shot wide from a good position before, with 4 minutes left, Smyth was guilty of a bad tackle in the middle of the park and was shown a second yellow and the resultant red.

With United reduced to 10 men for the extra 30 minutes they reshuffled the pack and took a dramatic lead when a free kick by Smillie on the right fell to SPENCE out on the left wing and he gleefully cut inside before curling a low shot into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the area giving Mehigan no chance. The Bankies looked shocked and 5 minutes later Campbell beat two men to get clear but Mehigan came out well to block with his legs. However, things got worse for the homesters in the last minute of the first period when a long ball went all the way through to Mehigan who came outside his box to clear upfield but was quickly closed down by Campbell and his rushed clearance fell to substitute Lee DOCHERTY and he calmly controlled the ball and threaded it past several Clydebank players and into the net from all of 45 yards out to stretch Blackburn's lead. Two minutes into the second period of extra time Docherty fired a 20 yard free kick just over but after that it was Clydebank who threw everything at Blackburn in a desperate attempt to get back into the game and with 2 minutes left they grabbed their third goal of the afternoon when Stalker spilled the ball from a speculative shot and BERRY scrambled it into the net.

Line Up: Stalker, Boyd, Malloy, Smillie, Smyth, Spence, Savage, Drummond (Duncan 87), McCardie (Docherty 71), Campbell (Fowler 118), Whiteford Subs (not used): Heeps, Gilmour, Stewart