13th November 2021 Tranent Juniors 1 Penicuik Athletic 1

I was not sure if I would be able to get to a match today. Natalie was mean to be childminding but was having a bad day so i said I would do it. This meant I would be tied up between 14.00 and 17.00 and unable to got out. However Craig phoned at 10.30 to say he was running late and as Claire was now finishing at 16.30 I would not be required. I therefore decided to revert to my original plan and head out to Tranent to watch the match between the second top home side and league leaders Penicuik. After an early lunch I left home at 12.30 and, to allow me to get some exercise, walked to Abbeyhill where I caught a 104 bus to Tranent. I got of the bus a stop early in Tranent and walked to the ground. I was surprised on the way to see that the RBS branch in Tranent was still open. Given the size of the town I would have expected it to have been on the list for closure. Forester Park is just of the High Street and I arrived at the ground around 14.10. I paid my £4 entry and entered the ground. As is usual at Tranent no programmes were available although I was able to access the team line-ups from Twitter. I took up a position in the covers enclosure ready of the kick-off.

Tranent, under the management of former Hearts striker Callum Elliot, ae currently second in the East of Scotland Premier Division. They have recently strengthened their side by signing two new striker Wayne McIntosh and Rory Currie. McIntosh is a prolific striker at this level and did play for Penicuik for a season. After scoring thirty goals he decided to move into the ammeter ranks but returned to EoS this season with another of his former clubs, Whitehall Welfare. He moved to Tranent a few weeks ago and scored five goals in a 7-0 win against Whitehill in med-week only to find himself on the bench this afternoon. Currie, another former Hearts player, did not get much off chance at Tynecastle under Craig levin. After his contract ended he signed for Brechin City last season. While still under contract at Brechin he was transferred to Tranent a couple of weeks ago and has scored three goal in his first two games for his new club. Penicuik lead the table by one point but have two games in hand over Tranent. Their side was along the usual lines although I was surprised to see Lumbert Kateleza start with Paul Tansey on the bench. Tansey has had problems ,recently with injury and a suspension following a sending-off, but I think he is a better player and finisher than Kateleza. Penicuik included three former Spartans players, Paul Thomson, Nicky Reid and Scott McCrory-Irving in their starting eleven.

The match started with tranent having most of the possession but the Penicuik defence were able to keep them from making any real goal attempts. Oban Anderson playing as a right winger looked particularly effective for the home side. The first attempt at goal came in around fifteen minutes. Reid made a break from midfield for Penicuik but has shots from just outside the penalty box was turned away by Kevin Swain in the Tranent goal for a fruitless corner. Shortly after Tranent had a good chance when the Penicuik defence failed to clear a Craig Stevenson cross properly. The ball was returned to Stevenson who made a run to the bye-line. Hs low ball across goal found no takers with Currie at the far post being unable to reach the cross. Kateleza then robbed the ball from Jake Mitchell and made a run towards the penalty box. He seemed to be unsure what do to as he entered the box and Shaun Rutherford made a superb tackle to clear the danger. Reid had the ball in the Tranent net just before halftime but the ‘goal’ was ruled out for offside against Aidan Walsh earlier in the move. 

I don’t know what manager Stevie McLeish said to his side at halftime but they came out with a different attitude and were looking for a goal. I met McLeish several years ago when I did an SFA coaching course which he ran. I can confirm he is an excellent coach although probably used to working with better players than me ! There was a strange incident about ten minutes into the half when substitute Tansey was warming up at the Tranent goal end. The referee told to to return to the dugout and put a bib on as his training top could be confused with the Penicuik shirts. Penicuik took the lead just before the hour mark. A Baptie corner reached David Edward’s on the right hand side of the penalty box. He laid the ball back to McCrory-Irving on the right touch line around thirty-five yards from goal. The midfielder looked to cross back into the penalty area but Mishima his cross. The ball floated towards the far post and into the Tranent net. Walsh 

looked  to get a touch as the ball was crossing the line but McCrory-Irving was credited with the goal.After the goal Penicuik brought on Tansey for Katezela however Tranent almst scored direct fro the restart. Sean Wringe had a header over Bob Watt in the Penicuik goal but it dropped over at the far post. Tranent equalised with ten minutes to go. McIntosh had come on as a substitute and inevitably he scored the goal. A long throw from Stevenson was deflected on of a defenders head and then flicked across goal by a Tranent player. McIntosh was unmarked ten yards from goal and volleyed the ball into the net. As the game moved into injury time Reid wad fouled thirty yard from goal. Baptie’s free-kick was pushed over the bar by Swain. The keeper hit his head against the post making the save but recovered to push the resulting corner away from underneath his crossbar before the final whistle.

An excellent game with a crowd of 1235 which is great for a non-league game. I walked back to Tranent High Street and caught a 104 bus back into town. Home by 17.30 after a great day out. 

Teams

Tranent: Swain, Stevenson, Donaldson, Miller, Mitchell, Rutherford, Watson, Currie Wringe, Murphy, Anderson. 

Subs: McIntosh, Thomson, Reid

Penicuik

Watt, Forbes, Baptie, Young, Thomson, Edwards, Kateleza, Watson, Walsh, McCrory-Irving, Reid.

Subs: Tansey, Lamb, Sommerville.