9th September 2023 Musselburgh Athletic 6 Penicuik Athletic 2

 

With the international break this weekend there were no SPL games being played. I had various options for a match but decided to go and watch Musselburgh v Penicuik in the EoS Premier Division. I left home around 13.00 and walked down to Haymarket to catch a 26 bus to Musselburgh. The weather was very warm and I thought I was going to fall asleep on the one hour journey. I took the bus to the Brunton Theatre and walked back along the High Street to Olivebank to get some fresh air to wake me up. I got to the ground around 14.10 in plenty time for the 14.30 kickoff. A £4 admission charge and £2 for a programme got me into the ground in plenty time for the kickoff. I had a wander round the ground and took up a position in the covered terracing area to hopefully provide some refuge from the heat.

It looked like being an interesting match with Musselburgh fourth in the league and Oenicuik eighth. Musselburgh have an excellent paitr of strikers despite all-time top scorer Mattie King having now retired. With Nathan Evans an Jordan Smith up from they have two strikers who are proven goal-scorers at EoS Scotland league level. In defence they also have one of my all-time favourite lower league player in Craig ‘Grinchy” Stevenson. I have seen him play for Spaartns, Penicuik, Tranent and Musselburgh and he always gives 110% in every match. Penicuik are having a mixed season with a couple of heavy defeats in addition to losing to Crossgates Primrose at Montgomery Park earlier this week. With a number of managerial changs in the last six months I am unsure if they had sufficient time to prepare for the new season under current manager Lewis Coult after a number of senior players were released at the nd of last season. 

Musselburgh started the game well and opened the scoting in the first minute when Zac Kane broke down the left and cut the ball back to Evans on the edge of the penalty box. The striker had no difficulty ign shooting past Evan Miller from the edge of the box. Things got worse for Penicuik minutes later when Evans raced onto a though ball but was taken out by Miller just inside the penalty area. The referee awarded Musselbutrgh a penalty and showed Miller a red card. I was unsure that a red card was justified given Penicuik had suffer ‘double jeopardy’ with the award of a penalty and also the loss of their goal=keeper. Midfielder Liam Gray was replaced by substitute keeper Finlay Mclean who normally plays in the U20s side. The keepers first task was to pick Grinchy’s well struck penalty from the corner of the net five minutes into the game. Musselburgh went three up after nine minutes when Mclean fumbled a weak shot from Jackson Barker from just inside the penalty area. The keeper eemed to have the shot covered as he dived to save but was unable to hold the bll as it passed trhough his arms nto the net. After fourten minutes i was 4-0 when Smith chased a through ball. As  Mclean rushed from his goal Smith lifted the ball over his head and into the net for another Mussleburgh goal. Last time I saw Penicuik play awy from home them were dfeated 9-0 at Tynecastle and I feared for a repeat today. However Paul Thomson pulled a goal back after seventeen minutes when a corner was cleared to the centre-half on the edge of the penalty area. His shot into the top corner gave Danny Laing no chance of making a save. Penicuik then lost fullback Sean Melvin to injury after twenty-eiht minutes and he was replaced by Liam Hall. However Penicuik managed to hold out for the remainder of the first half/

Penicuik took off skipper and striker Aaron Somerville at halftime and brought on midfielder Leo Buckle.in fifty-seven minutes Penicuik scored again from another corner. the all fell at the feet og Darrell Young around ten yards from goal and his first time shot flew into he net. Musselburgh scored again after eighty minutes when substiture Kris Renton headed the ball down inside the penalty box for Smith to score again from aound twelve yards on the left off the penalty area. Renton was involved again in goal number six when he broke down the right and sent a low ball across goal for fellow substitute and former Penicuik player Ben Weekes to net from around ten yards. The final whistle blew giving Musselburgh a deseved win against a depleted Penicuik side. 

On thr finsl whistle I left the ground and walked down to Musselburgh High Street. A 26 bus arrived within a few minutes and I caught that back into Princes Street. The bus was packed and it took ages to get back into central Edinburgh. However I was able to get off the 26 in princes Street and caught a 34 which was coming up behind home. I got home around 17.30 after another good lower league match.

Teams

Musselburgh Athletic: Laing, Stevenson, Black, O'Connor, Wilson, Kane, Evans, Anderson, Smith,Barker, Khan

Subs: Hope, Renton, Henderson, Weekes..

Penicuik Athletic: Miller, Melvin, Inglis, Young, Thomson, Gray, Wardlaw, Furness, Coogans, Somerville, Taylor-McKenzie

Subs: McLean, Hall, Roue, Dawson