Brechin City 3
Clydebank 1
League (Division 2)

Match Report

Dick Madden's day will be one he'd rather forget. Two first-half blunders had Clydebank staring down the barrel of a drubbing in their League One opener at Glebe Park, but a stellar second-half display from the young goalkeeper saved their blushes.

Despite fielding five teenagers, the Bankies started brightly, playing some attractive football. However, Brechin's experience proved too much to handle in the early stages.

Just twelve minutes in, disaster struck for the visitors. Madden completely misjudged Tocher's free-kick from halfway, allowing the ball to sail over his head and into the net. A nightmare start for the young Clydebank side.

Four minutes later, things went from bad to worse. Harrier raced onto a long punt from Petrie and cleverly chipped the ball over a hapless Madden to double Brechin's lead.

Clydebank, however, showed spirit and clawed their way back into the game from the penalty spot. New signing Ian Hawkshaw stepped up and coolly slotted the ball past the keeper.

Unfortunately for Madden – and the Bankies – the big man was at fault again just before the break. He was sluggish in getting down to a shot from Ward, allowing the ball to squirm under him and into the net.

Rutherford had a glorious chance to reduce the deficit again before half-time but blazed his effort over with an open goal at his mercy.

The second half saw a change in fortunes for Madden. Substitute Collumbine, replacing Eddie Moore, was immediately booked for a cynical foul, while Hawkshaw also saw yellow later on. However, the clear positive for the Bankies was Madden's transformation in goal.

While Brechin arguably played the better football after the break, they simply couldn't find a way past the inspired goalkeeper. O'Donnell, a constant threat down the left flank, forced a good save from Madden in one of the home side's brighter moments.

Hay, Hawkshaw, and a much-improved Madden were the standout performers for a young Clydebank side who, despite the defeat, showed glimpses of promise throughout the game.

Match report written by Adapted by Stuart McBay