1st April 2024. The Spartans 4 University of Stirling 2

 

Another match at Ainslie Park today with Spartans meeting University of Stirling in the South Challenge Cup quarter finals. I left home around 13.30 and walked down Ainslie Park down the old railway path. I arrived around 14.30 and showed my Fanbase ticket at the turnstile for entry. As the game was a cup tie my season ticket was not valid. I bought a £2 programme and also received a free copy of last weeks issue which had been delayed at the printers and was not received at the ground in time for the match. I also bought a half-time draw ticket although I  never seem to win anything. I then took a seat in the stand to read my programme(s) before the match kicked. 

Spartans fielded an unchanged side from last week. The strength of the squad can be seen by those named on the substitutes bench. Alan Brown, Sean Brown, Gregor Woods, Harvey Swann, Ian McFarland and Mikey Herd are all experienced with a wealth of experience in the lower leagues and the SPFL. Having defeated the Uni 4-0 in a Lowland League match three weeks ago Spartans would be confident of reaching the semi-finals of the competition. The Uni have been one of the surprise packets in this years Lowland League. They are currently in fifth position, or third if you discount Rangers and Celtic ‘B’ teams who are not eligible for promotion. The Uni have a young side but play some good football under manager and former player Chris Geddes. 

Spartans started well with Cammy Russell looking dangerous on the left. They finally went ahead after seventeen minutes when Jamie Dishington raced into the penalty box and was brought down by the diving Uni keeper, Ben Fry. Fry protested that he had played the ball before Dishington went down but all he received for his protests was a yellow card. Blair Henderson slammed the kick into the right hand corner of the net as Fry dived to the left. Spartans scored a second after twenty-seven minutes. Bradley Whyte was fouled as he passed the ball to Henderson on the edge of the centre circle, the striker looked up and saw Russell about five yards in from the touchline on  the left. Henderson fed the ball on to Russell who ran on into the penalty area pursued by a Uni defender. Russel then shot past the advancing keeper Fry into the far corner of the net. Minutes later the Uni’s James Berry was booked for what the Spartans website described as a Kungfu challenge on Russell. Berry was yellow carded and Russell recovered to play on after treatment from the physio. Mikey Allan was injured in a challenge but recovered after treatment.

The half-time draw was announced over the tannoy and one of the winning tickets was 986. My £1 investment had given me tickets 981-985, close but no cigar ! The second half started without any changes for Spartans although the Uni brought on Ben McIver-Redwood and Calum Rae. Interestingly the Spartans team-sheet listed Rae as the substitute goalkeeper rather then the correct sub keeper, Buronbeck Mirzasalimov Within a minute however Spartans replace Allan with Harvey Swann, as it appeared that the full-back had not recovered from his earlier knock. The third goal arrived in fifty-seven minutes. Rhys Armstrong passed the ball forward to Russell who raced into the penalty box on the left. His low cross was turned into his own net by Stirling full-back Matt Burns as he slid in in an attempt to clear the ball before it could be put into the net by lurking Spartans forwards. A 3-0 lead seemed comfortable but the Uni fought back. A cross into the penalty area bounced around without being cleared before in fell to Rae around twelve yards from the goal facing the wrong way. He swivelled and sent a low shot past Blair Carswell to pull a goal back. Three minutes later and it was 3-2. A corner was not properly cleared and fell to Berry in the centre of the goal just inside the penalty box. He fired a low shot pat Carswell to cut the deficit to one. Swann fired a rebound of Fry from a Whyte shot over the bar before Spartans scored a fourth in seventy-one minutes. Russell sent a corner from the right into the six yard box for a diving Kieran Watson to deflect the ball into the net past Fry. Both sides made a number of substations but there were no further goals with Spartans moving forward to the semi-finals where they will meet Caledonian Braves.

After the match I walked up to Ferry Road where I saw a 27 bus coming round the Crewe Toll roundabout. I caught that and thought I would be home in time to watch Chelsea V Aston Villa on Sky. However from Hanover street to Lauriston Place it appeared that most of the tourists in Edinburgh wanted a 27 bus and I end up getting home around 17.45 having missed the first goal in the televised match.

Teams

Spartans: Carswell, Watson, Allan, Waugh, Tapping, Whyte, Dishington, Jones, Henderson, Armstrong, Russell.

Subs: Swann, S. Brown, Herd.

University of Stirling: Fry, Thompson, Burns, Service, Lavery, Berry. Heal, Jarvis, McKinley, Stokes, Munro.

Subs: McIver-Redwood, Rae, McAnninch