7th October 2017 The Spartans v Whitehill Welfare 2-0

Another game at Ainslie Park and again I walked down to the ground. It was a beautiful sunny day and on arrival at the ground I went to the cafe/bar for a sausage roll and a diet coke. No programme was issued specifically for this game with Saturdays programme being a doodle issue covering matches against Vale of Leithen and Whitehill Welfare. As kick-off loomed I wandered down to the stand and found there was a problem. At Ainslie Park in the autumn for evening kick-offs the Pilton end of the ground is generally covered by the setting sun meaning spectators have to squint or wear sunglasses to see clearly. Today the Ferry Road end was caught in the setting sun and it was difficult to see what was happening at that end on occasions. Would have never thought that I would have to bring sunglasses to wear at a match in Scotland in October !

Spartans against Whitehill used to be a top of the table clash but Whitehill have fallen away over the last few seasons. Last season under David Bingham they lost a number of regular and good players and they have been replaced by graduates from the under 20 side. Results this season have not been spectacular but last week they beat Vale of Leithen and are now out of the relegation area. Spartans made a few changes from midweek and it was surprising to see Blair Atkinson on the bench. He provides a bit of pace and a goal threat the Spartans attack. It was interesting to see an article in the Evening News quoting Blair as saying he had been rejected by both Hearts and Dundee Utd because of his lean build. Does it say something about Scottish football that strikers are expected to be big and strong ? Would Hearts have signed John Robertson if this had been the case in the 1980s?

The game started with Spartans on the attack and the best chance in the first half came when Ross Allum met a cross from Jamie Dishington about eight yards out. He was stretching for the ball and his shot was blocked by Connar Easton in the Whitehill goal. Whitehill were not out of the game and had a great chance after a mix-up between Blair Tolmie and Andrew Stobie in the Spartans goal. The ball broke to Jack Wright about 40 yards out and his shot went over the bar as the keeper scrambled back to his goal area.

The second half continued in the same vein and Allum had another chance from a  Dishington through ball. He was between two defenders on the eighteen yard line as he shot but Easton made another good save to turn the ball away. After an hour Spartans brought on Atkinson and Scott Wilson for Alan Brown and Jack Nixon. With his first touch Wilson swung a corner kick into the Whitehill box which Blair Tolmie headed home for the opening goal. The second followed around ten minutes later when a  Dishington ball into the penalty box as deflected past his own keeper by Lewis Kidd. The Spartans announcer gave the goal to Jamie but the ball was clearly deflected and would not have gone in without the defenders intervention.

League leaders BSC Glasgow were surprisingly defeated by Civil Service Strollers and Spartans are now one point of the top of the table with a game in hand. After the game I walked to Crewe Toll and caught a bus to Princes Street and then another bus home

Teams

The Spartans; Stobie, Nixon, Stevenson, Tolmie, Thomson, Greenhill, Brown, McFarland, Allum, Herd, Dishington.

Subs: Wilson, Atkinson, Guthrie

Whitehill Welfare: Easton, McGrath, McPartlin, McKenzie, Kidd, Lucas, Mitchell, McGregor, Wright, Smith, Swanson.

Subs:Reid, Nicholson, Knox