Saturday 5th November 2022
Scottish Amateur Cup
Third Round
Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers 2 - 5 Oban Saints
Clyde Valley High School
Castlehill Road
Overtown
Wishaw
North Lanarkshire
ML2 0LB
Kick-off 1pm
Referee Mr Lee Dougela
Cammy Hill's thirteenth minute strike lit the blue touch paper on last Saturday's Guy Fawkes day Scottish Amateur Cup clash with Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers ultimately sending Saints rocketing into round four.
The third round encounter with the Overtown based Caledonian League Premier Division outfit was a typically keenly contested affair with injuries, red cards, a missed penalty kick and seven goals all adding to the Scottish Amateur Cup fireworks.
Two first half strikes from Hill twice had Saints ahead only for Lee Miller to bag a brace of equalisers for the hosts sending the combatants in level at the break. Hill completed his hat-trick with twenty minutes left on the clock and this time there was no way back for the battling Wishaw men with Rory Dowd and Kyle Cooper banging in two late goals to eventually make the tie safe for Saints.
Saints Manager Ross Maitland was forced to make a number of changes to the previous week's squad as work commitments saw Cammy Clark and James Conington miss out with Gavin Forgrieve, Fraser MacFarlane and Jack Wright all returning.
Saints lined up with Graham Douglas in goal behind a back four of Ross Campbell, Myles McAuley, Ben Forbes and Captain Scott Maitland. Across the four man midfield were Connor Moore, Rory Dowd, Matty and Cammy Hill with Lewis Cameron tucked in behind central striker Kyle Cooper. On the substitutes bench were Gavin Forgrieve, Fraser MacFarlane, Andrew Mallia and Jack Wright.
The hosts kicked off attacking the school end at Clyde Valley High School and proceeded to dominate the early stages with Ryan McGoldrick's set pieces a particular threat. McGoldrick's fifth minute free-kick from thirty six yards was met solidly by Jordan McGuigan whose thumping header cleared the Saints crossbar by a matter of inches.
After a very slow start Saints burst into life in the thirteenth minute taking the lead with their first attempt on goal. Connor Moore burst forward on the right and did well to escape the attentions of Craig Stark but couldn't pick out Kyle Cooper with his cross. Scott Maitland kept the ball alive on the left and played the ball inside for Cammy Hill who strode forward and found the bottom corner from twenty eight yards beating Gary Miller low to his right.
Wishaw central defender Craig Stark was allowed to carry the ball a long way out from the back in the sixteenth minute and made it all the way into the Saints box where he picked out Lee Miller for a shot across the face of goal and narrowly wide of Graham Douglas' right hand post.
Ryan Goldrick followed Stark's example sixty seconds later striding froward and flashing a low twenty four yard drive wide of target.
The hosts were deservedly back on level terms after nineteen minutes when Andrew Watters charged down Ross Campbell's attempted ball up the line for Connor Moore. The ball appeared to strike Watters' arm however Referee Lee Dougela, who had a good game, allowed play to continue with Watters playing the ball inside to Jamie Moir. Moir made an audacious attempt to lob Graham Douglas from thirty yards which was foiled by the crossbar with Lee Miller quickest to react to bundle the loose ball over the line from close range.
An improved spell from Saints saw Cammy Hill and Kyle Cooper have decent efforts saved by Gary Miller and Conner Moore curl a left footed shot just wide of the junction of post and crossbar.
Andrew Watters, who was giving Ross Campbell a difficult time on the Wishaw left, beat the young Saints fullback on the way to a well struck thirty second minute shot which Graham Douglas saved well low to his right.
Saints regained the lead in the thirty second minute with Cammy Hill capitalising on good work by Lewis Cameron, Connor Moore and Kyle Cooper to latch onto a loose ball in the Wishaw box deftly lifting the ball over Gary Miller and into the net,
The Wishaw defence were finding Hill a handful and the big striker's thirty eighth minute run into the box drew an injudicious challenge from Jordan Dunn which earned the Wishaw Skipper a yellow card. Designated penalty taker Lewis Cameron took the ball from Hill but sent a disappointing effort far too close to Gary Miller which the Wishaw keeper parried before gathering safely at the second attempt.
Saints were punished for passing up the opportunity to double their lead when the hosts levelled for a second time four minutes later. David Rae's deep free-kick from the edge of his own box somehow managed to evade Myles McAuley, Ben Forbes and Graham Douglas allowing Lee Miller to head the ball into the unguarded net.
In the third minute of first half stoppage time Saints were presented with another dead ball opportunity when Lewis Cameron was chopped down on the edge of the Wishaw box. Cameron curled his effort around the Wishaw wall but once again too close to Gary Miller who was by this time clearly struggling with a hamstring injury.
Saints Gaffer Ross Maitland demanded more from his charges in the second half which began encouragingly for Saints with an early Lewis Cameron free-kick lifted into the box looking for Cammy Hill who appeared to be pushed as the ball was headed behind for a corner kick.
Hill was once again the centre of attention in the forty seventh minute when the big striker, with the goal at his mercy, slipped before he could pull the trigger giving the home side a massive let-off.
The pendulum of fate swung massively in Saints favour when the injured Gary Miller was unable to continue with central defender David Rae taking the gloves and Jack McLaughlin coming on as a replacement.
Saints looked to test Rae immediately when Kyle Cooper made a driving run onto the box and sent a cut-back towards Connor Moore on the six yard line. Jordan McGuigan spread himself on the ground but when the ball struck his left arm Referee Dougela allowed play to continue with Conner Moore eventually putting the chance wide of target with the outside of his left boot.
Saints Gaffer Ross Maitland made a double change in the fifty first minute withdrawing Ross Campbell and Matty Kelly and replacing them with Fraser MacFarlane and Gavin Forgrieve.
Connor Moore put another effort wide of target in the fifty seventh minute after linking up well with Cammy Hill and Kyle Cooper and successfully lifting the ball over the advancing David Rae.
On the hour mark Jamie Moir made a good near post run to head an Andrew Watters cross from the left just wide of Graham Douglas' right hand post before the tie took another twist. Jordan Dunn's first half caution came back to haunt him when his sixty sixth minute trip on Kyle Cooper earned the Wishaw Skipper his second yellow reducing the home side to ten men.
Kyle Cooper put the resulting free-kick into the Wishaw wall but Cammy Hill fared better from an almost identical position five minutes later. Hill was brought down by Jordan McGuigan twenty yards from goal before Kyle Cooper curled the loose ball into the net past David Rae. Referee Dougela however had already blown for the foul and from the resulting free-kick Hill, with the aid of a slight deflection, curled the ball beyond Rae to complete his hat-trick.
Hill was denied a fourth by an excellent seventy fifth minute David Rae save after being put through by Lewis Cameron.
Jack Wright replaced Connor Moore with ten minutes remaining slotting in at right back allowing Fraser MacFarlane to push forward.
With just a single goal lead Saints knew the tie was far from over and Graham Douglas was brought into the action to make a good save from an eighty fourth minute Declan Sloan shot.
Lewis Cameron, Kyle Cooper and Rory Dowd all failed to test David Rae from promising positions before Dowd eventually gave Saints some breathing space in the eighty seventh minute. The midfield man has a keen eye for goal and after escaping the attentions of the chasing pack of Wishaw defenders kept his composure to curl a sweet finish well out of reach for stand-in keeper Rae.
Wishaw however refused to give up and, from the restart, won a free-kick on the left just outside the Saints box. Ryan McGoldrick's delivery was headed out to the edge of the box by Ben Forbes but only as far as second half substitute Jack McLaughlin who returned it with interest sending Graham Douglas flying to his right to push the ball behind for a corner kick.
Myles McAuley met McGoldrick's corner kick from the left with a solid header which launched a Saints counterattack. Fraser MacFarlane broke up the right wing and picked out the supporting run of Kyle Cooper with a well weighted pass into the young striker's path. Cooper had too much pace for Jordan McGuigan who tried manfully to get back but couldn't prevent Cooper from slotting past David Rae to round off the scoring and send Saints into the hat for the fourth round draw.
Referee Dougela allowed enough stoppage time for Saints Gaffer Ross Maitland to hand Andrew Mallia a debut replacing Ben Forbes in the back four. Jack Wright moved inside making Mallia the fourth player to fill the right back berth in the tie.
Saints return to league business this coming Saturday when they welcome Harestanes to Glencruitten in the Central Scottish Amateur Football League Premier Division.
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