East Stirling 1-0 Berwick R
Monday 12th October 2009
Berwick Rangers found themselves at the wrong end of another controversial refereeing decision on Saturday, one which cost them a deserved point in an evenly-fought contest on the Ochilview plastic against fellow contenders East Stirling. Rangers are due some luck shortly, and after losing out to Forfar and Shire in consecutive weeks by the narrowest possible margin, with the winning goals heavily influenced by the match officials,they'll be hoping for a reversal of fortunes when they visit Livingston next weekend. Given the circumstances surrounding Livingston's presence in the Third Division this season, I suspect that's a hope shared by a wider audience than just Berwick Rangers supporters.
Injuries forced Jimmy Crease into two key changes, Stephen Radzynski making his full debut in place of the hamstrung Damon Gray, and Ian Little replacing Fraser McLaren on the right side of midfield. Shire came into the match on the back of two contrasting results - a superb 3-1 victory over Livingston and a 3-0 tanking at surprise leaders Albion Rovers. After last week's Hurricane Travesty at Shielfield, Rangers were keen to make amends and hit Shire with everything but the kitchen sink in the opening minutes. With sixty seconds gone, Radzynski sent a free header over from a Callaghan free kick; a minute later, Notman made a coruscating run down the right, cut inside the floundering Hay and shot over when it looked easier to score.Shire had another escape in the 4th minute, when King appeared to handle a Callaghan corner. Not that the traffic was all one way. With Rangers regular defensive rock Jamie Ewart looking out of sorts on the artificial surface, Simon Lynch got behind the Gers' back line in the 6th minute only to shoot straight at Peat. Lynch's muscular presence was starting to cause Rangers some real problems, and Ewart got lucky in the 20th minute when referee McLean missed his WWF throw on the striker, which looked a dead cert for a penalty. With Jamie Stevenson pulling the strings, Shire's more nimble midfield began to get a grip of the game and McGuire should have done better than head into the side netting from Richardson's 32nd minute corner. With Little and Greenhill anonymous in the wide positions, Ally Brazil was forced to forage out wide for a decent supply of ball,but his efforts almost paid off in the 35th minute when he cut in from the left and thundered a 30 yarder off Barclay's crossbar with the keeper grasping at fresh air. Brazil concluded a slightly disappointing but even first 45 with a looping header on the stroke of half time.
Any ambitions Rangers had of stepping up the pace were shot down in flames within a minute of the restart. With Rangers attacking,Shire left back Richardson cleared the ball for a Gers throw-in mid way inside the home half. With the linesman flagging for a throw to the visitors, the referee decided to play on. The linesman continued to flag for the throw and,pretty much to a man, Rangers stopped, still expecting the decision to be given in their favour.They were wrong, and they made the cardinal sin of not playing to the whistle. With Rangers players marooned upfield, McGuire broke down Rangers' left and set up Rodgers for an angled shot underneath the exposed Peat. Callaghan led the angry protests and such was the strength of feeling amongst the Rangers camp that manager Crease and Callaghan had to be dragged away from the referee at the end of the match. Not surprisingly, it took some time for Rangers to recover their equilibium and Shire took advantage to press for the killer second goal. Despite having ample possession in midfield, they rarely tested Peat, though Tully headed just over in the 56th minute and Peat made his only difficult save of the match a minute later, backpeddling to tip Weaver's deflected shot over the bar in the 58th minute. Fired up by another perceived injustice, Rangers got the bit between their teeth and began to take the game to Shire. They were denied a deserved equaliser in the 61st minute when Ewart headed against the underside of the bar from Callaghan's corner. Stephen Radzynski, who had put in an impressive shift up front and proved himself worthy of a starting place, tested Barclay with a sharp turn and shot in the 66th minute.
With the clock ticking down, Jimmy Crease threw caution to the wind and stuck Ewart up front to frighten the home centre halves. It almost worked, Barclay denying sub Oliver Russell with two superb blocks in the final minute after Ewart had set up the midfielder. October was always going to be a challenging month with matches against their four closest competitors, and Rangers can count themselves unlucky not to have taken a point from the defeats against Forfar and Shire. Livingston will be another tough one, and Rangers will need to reprise their hard-working victory over the West Lothian outfit at Shielfield a few weeks ago if they are to take anything from Almondvale. Injuries to key players are starting to kick in, with Gray and McLaren out and Radzysnki limping off late on at Ochilview. Jimmy Crease will be looking for some assistance from Lady Luck next Saturday. He's certainly due it.
Peat 7; Notman 6; Ewart 5; Guy 6; Smith 5; Little 5; Callaghan 7; Currie 6; Greenhil 5; Brazil 6; Radzynski 6.
Crowd - 464
LINK : League Table
|
|
