27th July 2019 Bonnyrigg Rose v Vale of Leithen 6-0

Hearts were playing today at East Fife today in the Betfred Cup, however by the time I thought about going tickets had been sold out. I therefore decided to head to Bonnyrigg today to see the home side play their first match in the Lowland League, now the fifth tier of Scottish football. I walked down to Haymarket and caught a 31 bus at around 13.30 arriving in Bonnyrigg at 14.15. I got of a couple of stops early and walked to the park arriving at around 14.25. Paid my £7 admission and £2 for a programme and headed towards the uncovered concrete terracing on the dressing room side of the ground. Jim arrived after about five minutes. He had intended to go to Kelty Hearts v Dalbeattie Star which he had also attended last season. This had been Kelty's first match in the Lowland League and he changed his mind about going and instead came to Bonnyrigg to see their first match at the higher level. Just before kick-off we moved round the park to the grassy banking area opposite the covered area of the ground where the view is better.

Bonnyrigg included Scott Gray, brother of forward Ross, and Mark Weir in their line-up with both players having returned to the Rose after spells in the USA. New signings Daniel Baur (on loan from Hearts), George Hunter (from Newtongrange) and Jamie Docherty (from Livingston after a loan spell with Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale) were all in the squad albeit Docherty started on the bench. Interestingly the Bonnyrigg programme showed that out of a first team squad of eighteen players, thirteen had made more that seventy appearances for the club. Vale of Leithen included familiar names in Paul Thomson (formerly with Spartans), Ross Gilpin (another former Spartan) and Calum Hall (on loan from Edinburgh City) in their squad. Prior to the game Bonnyrigg were presented with their certificate confirming full membership of the Scottish Football Association by SFA President, and Hibs chairman, Rod Petrie. Given the hurdles the SFA had placed on Bonnyrigg being granted membership I am surprised that he had the nerve to turn up at New Dundas Park for the presentation. 

The match started with Bonnyrigg attacking and they looked threatening with McGachie causing problems for the Vale defenders with his physical presence and power in the air. Gray and Hunter were running of the centre forward and it looked as if a goal would not be long in coming. However when it came it came from an unlikely source. Gray took a corner on the Bonnyrigg left and sent the ball into the penalty box. Centre-back Kerr Young barely had to jump before powering his header past Gilpin from twelve yards to give Bonnyrigg the lead after twenty-six minutes. Three minutes later a mishit defensive clearance found McGachie about thirty yards from goal. He found Gray on the right who raced into the penalty box and shot across goal as Gilpin rushed to block his angles. Hunter slid in and the far post and forced the ball into the net despite the attentions of Calum O'Neill. Vale provided little threat in the first half and their only really opportunity came from a free-kick around twenty five yards from the Bonnyrigg goal. Ger Rossi curled the ball round the defensive wall but it slipped past the post without troubling Weir in the Bonnyrigg goal. The only downside for Bonnyrigg in the first half was a booking for McGachie for a trip just inside the Bonnyrigg half when there was plenty defensive cover to prevent Vale from profiting from the rare attack.

The second half continued as the first although  Bonnyrigg were a little sloppy with their passing and were not creating chances. However the third goal arrived after sixty-four minutes when full-back Neil Martyniuk fed the ball inside to Lee Currie on the left. Currie headed towards the byeline and fired a low ball across goal for McGachie to slid it home at the near post. Five minutes later Dean Brett scored a wonderful individual goal when he picked up a loose clearance about thirty-five yards out. He powered towards the penalty box beating one defender on the way, then another as he entered the box. From about twelve yards out he shot across goal into the far corner for a 4-0 lead. Directly after the goal both Brett and Currie were substituted by Jonathan Brown and Lewis Turner with Docherty replacing McGachie shortly after. Despite the changes Bonnyrigg continued to attack with Docherty looking good in an attacking midfield role. After beating two defenders he was brought down by a third on the edge of the box and it was surprising that no free-kick was awarded. The fifth goal arrived in eighty-seven minutes when Docherty drove into the penalty box on the left and was taken from behind by Thomson. After the defender was booked, in the absence of regular penalty taker Currie, Docherty took the kick and shot low into the left hand corner giving Gilpin no chance. The final goal came as the match moved into injury time when a cross from Hunter, after another pass from Martyniuk, was volleyed home by Turner from just outside the six yard box. I think this result will send a warning to other sides in the Lowland league that Bonnyrigg will be no pushovers as newcomers in the League. I do however think that Vale along with other sides from outside the urban conurbations such as Gretna, Dalbeattie and Gala may struggle to match the financial power of the Central Belt sides.

After the game I walked to the High Street and caught a 31 bus back into town. I got off at South Clerk Street and walked home along the Meadows arriving back at 17.40 after seeing a good game. Thankfully I did not go to East Fife were Hearts lost a penalty shoot-out 7-6 after a 1-1 draw. However they have still qualified for the knock-out stages of the Betfred Cup.

Teams
Bonnyrigg Rose: Weir, Brett, Martyniuk, Young, Baur, Horne, S.Gray, Stewart, McGachie, Currie, Hunter.
Subs: Brown, Turner, Docherty.
Vale of Leithen: Gilpin, O'Neill, Paterson, L. Hall, Higgins, Nicholson, Rossi, Ireland, Rixon, Thomson, Smith.
Subs: Trialist, Easton, Robertson.