Auchinleck Talb 1
Clydebank 2
League (WoSFL Premier)

Match Report

Clydebank recovered from losing a first minute goal to record their first win over Auchinleck Talbot at Beechwood Park since 2010, and nobody could grudge the Bankies their 2-1 victory. The two Littles, Creag and Nicky gave the Bankies a hard earned three points to move the club up to fourth place in the league table.

I said in the last match report that Clydebank could still have a big say in who goes on to win the championship and this defeat was a huge blow to Auchinleck’s title aspirations. On this showing Talbot don’t look anywhere near the sides of the recent past and with a mountain of fixtures ahead in the coming weeks it is hard to see them coming through.

League leaders Beith were the main beneficiaries here after they beat the Bankies on Friday night and then saw us take the points off Auchinleck. They will be loving the Bankies down Bellsdale way tonight.

Gordon Moffat freshened up the side with Jamie Darroch and Frazer Johnstone missing. Larry McMahon came back into the starting eleven, and in a change to the forward line, Josh Weir and Hamish McKinlay were preferred over Kelly and Higgins. Long term injury crocks Ciaran Mulcahy and Liam McGonigle were on the bench and both would get a first taste of action in several months late on in the game.

It was a wise decision by Gordon Moffat to go with McKinlay and Weir from the start Whilst neither player came close to scoring themselves, their pace and movement gave the Talbot defence plenty to think about, especially in the first half.

However, the Bankies had some serious regrouping to do after they fell behind in just 60 seconds. Lee Gallacher made a mess of an attempted clearance as he missed the ball completely and it ricocheted off his standing leg straight into the path of Michael Wardrope.

The former Irvine Meadow player smacked the ball first time from just outside the penalty box, and with the aid of a deflection it crashed high into the net.

It is fair to say we were all fearing the worst, and for the first ten – fifteen minutes Talbot were buzzing about. There was nothing new from Tommy Sloan’s side. They get the ball forward fast and battle for second balls, then use their fast wingers to launch cross balls into the danger area.

The Bankies defence did creak in those early stages, particularly down the right wing where Ross Taylor was having some joy. However, after the match settled down, Clydebank came more and more into it.

A first shot from Hamish McKinlay after ten minutes didn’t trouble Leishman greatly, but the signs were there that Talbot didn’t look very comfortable at the back.

Clydebank began to probe the home side through and twice Weir had sight of goal. The first was well blocked by a defender’s chest in the penalty area, then the Bankies forward seemed to be in two minds when he raced in from the right and his cross or shot slid across the six yard box with no one to take up the offer.

Talbot still looked dangerous, and Taylor tried an angled shot from 20 yards. Then Creag Little mis-cued a clearance hitting it off Wardrope. The ball was instantly squared to Wilson but he scuffed his shot straight at Donnelly.

Clydebank began to have more momentum behind them helped by a strong wind at their backs. Lee Gallacher came the closest yet with a clever curling shot from the right hand side of the box which forced Leishman to dive full length to push away.

After 25 minutes the Bankies deservedly equalised from a corner kick. Gallacher drove the ball across the box and a clever run by Creag Little saw him standing on his own, and he timed his volley to perfection sending the ball into Leishman’s bottom left corner.

Clydebank were the better side for the remainder of the half, and could have snatched an interval lead when Nicky Little rose at the near post to direct a Lee Gallacher corner kick just over the bar.

As expected, Talbot tried to turn the screw on the restart. However, for all their possession they huffed and puffed with no particular end product as the Bankies were resolute in defence.

The nearest they came was after a fine inward run from Taylor, saw him set up Wilson after 53 minutes. The striker unleashed a powerful shot and Donnelly was forced to beat the ball away on his left hand side.

With the pressure on Talbot to win the match, their efforts began to look more desperate, as they hit long balls more in hope than expectation. The Bankies looked like they were enjoying this, and slowly but surely began to find some gaps in the home defence.

It was from one of these moments that the winning goal was scored after 72 minutes. Hodge played a forward pass that was only half-cleared to Lee Gallacher. The winger spotted the unmarked Nicky Little and threaded the ball through to him inside the box.

Despite howls of offside from Talbot, Little kept his composure and slipped the ball past the advancing Leishman for his 24th goal of the season.

Talbot made a triple substitution to try and rescue at least a point, but they never really looked likely. The best they could muster was a long deep cross to Boylan, who from a decent position on the left rifled the ball off the side netting.

Nicky Little almost doubled his tally in stoppage time as he received a quick free kick from McMahon, but he was foiled by a fine save from Leishman. The third would have been the icing on the cake, but still a long overdue victory for the Bankies at Beechwood Park.

The Bankies players showed tonight they can go toe to toe with the top sides in this league, but possibly they are just as likely to lose to them as well at any given time. The league campaign has been punctuated with defeats at vital times as the club were always on the fringes of a proper title challenge.

This is position we have found ourselves in recent seasons against bigger spending rivals, and there is no doubt that it is a huge challenge in these circumstances. However, we should have high expectations and we should be disappointed when we come up short. It is having high standards that we will eventually meet our ambitions, and tonight proves that we are capable of it.

The Bankies travel back to this neck of the woods on Saturday when we visit Cumnock, and the players should be keen to avenge the recent home defeat as we strive to finish the season as high up the table as possible.

Match report written by Stuart McBay