Ladeside through as Scullion turns it on
A STELLAR secondhalf performance from striker Jon Scullion helped pave the way for Kilbirnie Ladeside to emerge worthy West of Scotland Cup winners over Petershill.
The ex-Morton signing, largely ineffective in the opening 45 minutes, was transformed into a proverbial thorn in the Peasy defence’s flesh after the interval and he helped himself to the game’s opening goal and set up the other for Cammy Elliot in a 2-1 Blasties triumph that should never have relied upon them benefiting from a couple of crossroads moments.
The 24 year old admitted: “Petershill’s tight marking made it difficult to get on the ball early on, but drifting wider and deeper enabled me to find pockets of space, which made all the difference.
“I was able to cut inside and curl a right-foot shot for my goal and there were several other near things, not just from myself, which could have led to more goals, so the narrow scoreline doesn’t really tell the story. We should have put the game to bed long before Joe Wilton has been called upon to save a Petershill penalty and they have scored late on.”
The Ladeside hitman made the breakthrough with a well-placed shot beyond Day in 50 minutes and only a wonderful Chris Ketterer block prevented him from netting another score just minutes later.
Kilbirnie went two up in 58 minutes when a driven Scullion corner kick was flicked home by the head of Elliot.
Day made decent stops to keep out netbound Elliot and Scullion efforts but a lifeline was thrown to the visitors by a penalty kick award at the other end after home team stopper Mick O’Byrne felled Cameron with a clumsy challenge inside the box.
The Peasy winger took the kick himself but his shot to the right of Wilton was at a perfect height for the keeper to parry the ball to safety and his save was to prove telling when Peasy substitute James MacLennan raced clear to halve his team’s deficit with an injury-time score.
DRAW: West of Scotland Cup. Round 2 Auchinleck Talbot v Cumnock, St Rochs v Shotts Bon Accord. Rossvale v Cambuslang Rangers, Rutherglen Glencairn v Kilbirnie Ladeside, Troon v Pollok,Craigmark v Gartcairn,Newmains Utd v East Kilbride Thistle,Lanark Utd v Kilsyth Rangers, Beith v Irvine Meadow, Glenafton v Lesmahagow, Bellshill Athletic v Benburb, Hurlford Utd v Glasgow Perthshire,Port Glasgow v Arthurlie,Carluke Rovers v Muirkirk, Cumbernauld Utd or Vale of Clyde v Shettleston,Rob Roy v Thorniewood Utd.