Cup woes persist as Linlithgow Rose suffer another dumping

Nov 27 2008 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

Arniston....... 2 Linlithgow...... 2

(3-2 after pens)

LINLITHGOW Rose’s topsy-turvy season continued last week as they paid the penalty in the East of Scotland Cup.

Rose are flying in the Super League, and are four points clear of second-placed Forfar with the added luxury of two games in hand.

However, their cup form has not been so impressive.

County neighbours Whitburn dumped them out of the Junior Scottish Cup and now Arniston have knocked them out of the East of Scotland Cup after a nail-biting penalty shootout.

Arniston have been a thorn in Rose’s side over the years, with upsets a regular feature of their meetings.

This time there was a whole league between the sides after Arniston dropped down a division, but that made no difference on Saturday.

The hosts stunned the West Lothian side by storming into a two-goal lead in the first half, leaving stunned Rose boss Brian Fairley looking for answers at the break.

But he certainly got the desired response as his charges won their first corner after 50 minutes.

Gradually they found a way forward and after some well-timed substitutions they got their rewards.

Substitute Gordon Herd started the revival by driving home with just 15 minutes left to play.

Then a matter of minutes later fellow sub Murray McDowell headed them level.

It was a dramatic fightback but neither side could conjure a winner and the tie went to penalty kicks.

Arniston keeper Stewart Baillie became the hero of the day after producing three great saves to deny Linlithgow a place in the draw for the next round.

It was a poor display from Linlithgow and one that manager Fairley wasn’t happy with but Arniston boss Brian McNaughton was thrilled.

McNaughton said: “I’ve a lot of faith in these young lads. They don’t fear big teams like Linlithgow.

“I’m sure a few of them are good enough to go and play for big Super League teams like them. They have the quality to step up and make an impact.

“It’s a big scalp but I’m always confident with penalties.

“Stuart’s a big lad who fills the goal well and he came up trumps for us.”

Linlithgow: Pinkowski, Robertson, King, Donnelly, Gallagher, Bradley, Tyrrell, Hogg, Grady, Geddes, James. Subs: McDermott, Livingston, McArthur, Herd, McDowell.

Whitburn...... 2 Broxburn......... 0

WHITBURN also found the going tough against lower league opposition but Derek Strickland’s men had enough in their locker to ease them through.

Whitburn started favourites and after a 15-minute spell of pressure they took the lead against their county rivals.

Chris Dolan found himself on the right wing and his inviting cross was powerfully headed home by David McGurk.

Broxburn held the Burnie to just a single goal advantage and it wasn’t until just 20 minutes from the end that the home side’s place in the third round was sealed.

And their fans were left breathing a sigh of relief at killing off their opponents who had rattled the woodwork twice in the second half.

Whitburn weathered the storm and Colin Strickland latched on to a free kick from John Murphy to steer them through.

On this showing, Broxburn could be one of the favourites for that single promotion spot in the South Division.

Whitburn: Walker, S Murphy, Leiper, Mooney, McGurk, J Murphy, McNelis, Lurinsky, Strickland, Dolan. Subs: Donnelly, D Murphy, MacKay, Roberts, Hannah.

Broxburn: Sheridan, Bishop, Gibson, Ritchie, Cunningham, Dickov, Wilson, Payne, Chilton, Craig, Young. Subs: Douglas, Cruikshank, Makin, McAfferty.