McNeil has last laugh after superb first-half goals display
East Kilbride ................. 6 Hawick Royal Albert .... 0
Paul Thomson
Four-goal hero Ross McNeil joked he was substituted at half-time because East Kilbride couldn’t afford to give him another match ball.
McNeil netted a three-minute hat-trick on his way to grabbing four first half goals, as the defending Lowland champions blew bottom side Hawick away at K-Park.
They raced into a 4-0 lead at the break before Scott Stevenson and Liam Coogans put some gloss on the scoreline.
However, McNeil didn’t appear for the second half after he was replaced by Aidan Ferris.
And with one match ball already secured for a hat-trick, the striker joked he was hooked by boss Billy Stark for fear of him costing the club another.
McNeil told the News: “It was disappointing to be substituted after all that, but the gaffer is blaming our kitman (Martin Fellowes) for taking me off.
“Martin said the club couldn’t afford to give me another match ball if I got another hat-trick, so they were all joking with me about that when I came off.
“But obviously I did a good job for the team when I was on and it gave us the chance to put other players on.
“I’m just happy to help us keep putting points on the board.
“We’ve worked hard to get back to the top of the league and we’re determined to stay there.
“Hopefully, I’ve done enough to keep myself in the team for next week.”