27th August 2021 Edinburgh City 2 Elgin City 0

 

Another game at Ainslie Park. With Edinburgh City playing this home league matches on a Friday night this season, including those after they relocate to Meadowbank, there is an opportunity for a number of Friday night outings. As I had done a bit of walking during the day I decided to take a bus to Ainslie Park. I walked along to Tollcross and caught a 36. When the bus arrived at the West End I looked behind and saw a 19. As the 19 goes closer to Ainslie Park I got off the 36 at Drumsheugh and got on the 19. This was probably a bad mistake as when the 19 turned the corner at the Dean Bridge there was a cyclist lying on the roadway with several people crowded round him. The bus could not get past due to traffic on the other side and the obstruction of a traffic island close to the prone cyclist. Some-one got on the bus and told the driver that the cyclist had hit one of the bollards marking the cycle lane and had come of his bike.What the cyclist was doing on the main roadway when there was a cycle lane is beyond my understand. Thankfully a man volunteered to stop the traffic o the there side to allow the bus and traffic behind to pass while the group waited for an ambulance. After a ten minute delay the buss was off again and I got off at Crewe Toll nd walked along the railway path the short distance to Ainslie Park. I showed my electronic ticket, purchased on Fanbase, to enter the ground and purchased the excellent match programme for £3. I met Ian, a fellow Hearts fan, and we had a chat before Jim and Malcolm both arrived. The three of us then wandered along to the grassy embankment beyond the stand and stood there to watch the match. Alex also arrived just before kick-off to join us. 

Edinburgh City ar having a difficult start to the season and are currently eighth in the league table with three points from four matches. to make things worse they have only scored one goal in these four games, the winner in theist home game with Stenhousemuir. The club have been badly effected by injuries and are missing captain Robbie McIntyre, goal scorer Ryan Stanley amongst others. They have however signed Innes Murray on loan from Hibs and the attacking midfielder will make his City debut tonight. City have had to include three members of their under 20 squad to make up numbers on the substitutes bench. Callum Crane took over the captains armband in the absence of McIntyre. Elgin City are fifth in the table with five points from their four matches. Goalscoring is not a problem for Elgin with Kane Hester having already scored three goals. Hester has been a consistent scorer for Elgin over the past few seasons. Elgin's pre-match warmup was overseen by Steven Mackay. Mackay was manager at Brora Rangers but quit earlier this month following a 6-2 defeat by Fraserburgh. He has now taken over as assistant to Gavin Price, the Elgin manager, and tonight was his first match in that role. 

To say this game started with a bang is probably an understatement. Straight from the kick-off Edinburgh worked the balll down the left and then fed it to Murray just outside the penalty area. He touched it round a defender then fed Danny Handling just inside the penalty area on the right. Handling shot high into the net with the aid off a slight touch of a defender to give Edinburgh a 1-0 lead. Twitter claimed the goal was in eighteen seconds and having watched it again on You Tube I can believe that.  The deflection was also the only time an Elgin player touch the ball since the kick-ff ! Edinburgh went 2-0 up in the seventh minute. Murray latched onto a short back-pass from Creag Little. He took it round the diving keeper Tom McHale in the penalty area but was forced wide. He then fired the ball across goal and while it may have gone in Handling slid in to make sure as he nudged the ball into the net. Edinburgh suffered a set-aback in thirteen miuuteswhen centre-back Lewis Toshney was forced of the field by injury. Scott Reekie came on as a like for like substitute. Elgin then tried to get back into the game but the Edinburgh defence were equal to the task. Hester did appeal for a penalty after a clash in the penalty area but the referee waved play on. From where I was standing, at the other end of the pitch, it looked a fair decision. 

Edinburgh started the second half well with James Hilton shooting over the bar from the edge of he penalty box. Elgin came back into things again however Edinburgh came close when a Handling cross was diverted away just before Ouzy See could take advantage at the back post.  As the game drew to a close Hester had a chance when he burst into the penalty area, His first shot was blocked and his second deflected away for a corner. Elgin had another vain penalty appeal when Euan Spark fell as the resultant kick came into the box before the referee blew the final whistle.

After the game Malcolm and I walked along the railway path to Crewe Toll while Jim and Alex headed in the opposite direction. When we got to the bus stop Checked my phone and saw that two buses were due. It was only when we saw two buses going the other way that I realise that I had been looking at information on the wrong bus stop. We walked up to the next stop and ten caught a 113 to the West End. I caught a 47 home while Malcom walked to Lothian Road for his bus. I walked from Fountainbride and was home around 22.20. 

Teams

Edinburgh City; Schwake, Brian, Crane, Toshney, Bronsky, Jardine, Murray, Tapping, See, Handling, Hilton

Subs: Reekie, Kane, Berry.

Elgin City; McHale, Cooney, Spark, McHardy, Little, Mailer, R Dingwll, T. Dingwall, Peters, Hester, O'Keefe.

Subs: McPhee, Sopel, Nicholson, McHado