Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Skipper’s strike settles late show
Gartcairn...........1 Maryhill............0 Gartcairn captain Kevin Ross led from the front as the table-topping side left it late to secure another win which maintains their lead in West Region league one.
The centre-back headed upfield in the closing stages against Maryhill as manager Jamie McKenzie threw players forward in a bid to break the deadlock at MTC Park.
His tactics finally reaped rewards as Ross netted a remarkable 10th goal of the season with just a minute remaining to secure the win – which means Gartcairn are still unbeaten after 13 league matches, and are five points clear at the top with a game in hand.
Gartcairn gaffer McKenzie told the Advertiser:“It was a game we dominated pretty much from the start; there were so many chances and on reflection we should have won a lot more comfortably.
“We had three one-on-ones with their goalkeeper and there were some good saves; I thought we were worthy of a bigger win but as the game went on and we weren’t getting that goal, you start to become edgy.
“Maryhill then had one or two late chances – so towards the end we went with four up front and then five, and it was a big relief when our captain scored.
“It came from good build-up and Scott McEwan getting up the wing and cutting it back into the box; Kevin played a one-two and spun with his back to goal and put a lovely finish into the bottom corner.
“He takes the penalties as well so it’s his 10th goal of the season, which is great for a centre-back.”
The manage added: “I’m over the moon with the amount of chances we created; for us only to score one goal is disappointing but this shows that even when that’s happened, we’re still grinding out three points.
“We’re keeping our unbeaten record almost halfway through the league season and it’s important that we keep working hard to maintain that.”
Visitors Maryhill also had a penalty claim shortly before half-time, and McKenzie admitted: “In real time I thought it looked like a penalty; but our guys said their player had run straight into ours and he couldn’t get out of the road.
“They had one or two chances and they hit the top of the crossbar towards the end of the game, but for me that was about our lack of people at the back as we threw so many forward in search of the winner.
“It was a reflection of the game to do that as we’d put so much in that if we hadn’t taken anything from the game it would have been really disappointing as we were so dominant.
“We took a chance as we were creating good chances and thought the more bodies we had forward, the better chance of scoring, and it paid off for us.”
Gartcairn now travel to meet Glasgow Perthshire on Saturday, and manager McKenzie anticipates a tough test after the teams’ memorable meeting in August, which ended 4-4.
He told the Advertiser: “They’ve probably given us the stiffest test of the season; we salvaged a draw in injury time on that occasion.
“They’re a big, strong, physical side and it’s a difficult place to go – but we’re in great spirits and we want to continue this unbeaten run and push on for as long as we can.”
Gartcairn’s league match at Keppoch Park on Saturday kicks off at 1.45pm.