Clydebank 0
Pollok 0 (4-5 on pens)
West of Scotland Football League Cup (3rd Round)

Match Report

Clydebank exited the West of Scotland Cup at the hands of Pollok after a penalty shootout, following a fairly uninspiring goalless draw at Holm Park. The game never got anywhere near the levels we have seen from both these sides in recent times, and Oisin McHugh was the unlucky man to miss his spot kick sending the Newlandsfield men through to the next round.

The Bankies should not be too despondent about this result, as they massively dominated the game, but just lacked that little bit of quality when it mattered. However, with Nicky Little and Lee Gallacher missing from the line up and Ciaran Mulcahy having an impressive cameo in the last 20 minutes on his comeback, then there is every reason to believe that we will turn Pollok over when it comes to the league games.

There was one change to the starting line up from our last game a fortnight ago and that was Larry McMahon replacing the injured Joe Slattery.

On a miserable cold day with incessant rain, it took a while for the game to get going with many passes going astray, and very little creative play. A McGonigle free kick which soared over the bar and a near post header from Luke Main were the only moments of note in a low key start.

Clydebank began to take control of proceedings as time wore on, however the game still didn’t take on the level of urgency expected in a cup tie. Pollok were offering next to nothing from an attacking perspective and the Bankies weren’t making the most of the chances that came their way.

Alan Kelly flashed a shot around a foot over the bar after a neat turn, and then Callum Graham failed to get the ball under control in the box when he looked favourite to reach it. Liam McGonigle should have done better when he was the beneficiary of a superb solo run from Oisin McHugh. The winger just didn’t seem to have the confidence to outpace Burns, and instead tried to turn inside the defender and he went down tamely in the hope of getting a penalty.

With ten minutes until the interval, the temperature finally started to rise after a multi-player altercation which all started with the blatant dive from Sean Burns when Calum Graham was nowhere near him. McMahon and Burns were booked and McGonigle and McGregor were fortunate not to join them after unnecessarily getting themselves involved in the scuffle.

With the break looming the Bankies should have taken the lead. Adam Hodge, who had a real captain’s performance, went on a dazzling run down the right wing and he slid the ball into the path of Calum Graham, but the luckless striker's shot came off the post. Alan Kelly hit the rebound goalward, but it was cleared by the diving stop of Forrester.

The second half followed much the same pattern, save for a ten minute spell when Pollok showed a little more intent once Jamie Henry was introduced to the action.

It was the Bankies doing almost all the pressing, but Pollok were defending stoically and not allowing the home side to make the vital breakthrough. Shots came from Nicky Low, and Calum Graham with Alan Kelly missing with a close range header. We were almost three quarters of the way through the game and neither keeper had a direct save to make.

It was just a few minutes later that perhaps the vital moment of the match came when a free kick was delivered into the box and Matt Niven appeared to take an elbow to the head. The ref and his assistant were in perfect positions but nothing was given. The reaction of the crowd and the fact that Niven had to leave the field as a result suggests there was something more sinister to it.

He was replaced by Creag Little, and, at the same time, Ciaran Mulcahy and Thomas Collins were introduced. This really gave the Bankies an extra edge and Pollok were extremely fortunate to get to the end of the match with their goal intact. Those two had struck up a dangerous understanding earlier in the season before Mulcahy had temporarily left the club, and it looks like they can pick up where they left off.

The Bankies really laid siege to the Pollok goal in the closing stages, but they just couldn’t find their way through, even with the additional seven minutes of stoppage time. The closest moment came from an Adam Hodge header that should really have been scored, but typical of the day he sent the ball off target.

This meant we went straight to penalty kicks, and when the Bankies had failed to get the goal that their play deserved in the 90 minutes, you just knew that the lottery of spot kicks was going to go against us. Pollok went first and Mullen, Henry, McGregor, Lindsay and Kerr all scored for the Glasgow side.

Fortune just wasn’t on the Bankies side as Donnelly saw a couple of the kicks squirm from his grasp and cross the line. For the Bankies Mulcahy, Low, Collins and Graham all netted before McHugh sent the ball to the keeper’s left but at a good saving height and Longmuir guessed correctly and pushed the ball to safety.

The intensity of the Pollok celebrations suggests that they know they got away with one today. For the Bankies, yes its always disappointing to lose to Pollok and go out of the last cup of the season. However, this really clears the deck for the league campaign. The side has been significantly strengthened with the return of Mulcahy and Little, and the signing of Connor Greene. Arguably, the Bankies were missing their two best players in Nicky Little and Lee Gallacher, and hopefully both will return from injury soon and the focus can now be directed to one purpose only.

We go to struggling Glenafton next week and finish the year off with the visit of Largs Thistle to Holm Park. We must go looking for maximum points in these two games and ratchet up the pressure on our rivals as go into the new year.

Match report written by Stuart McBay