Agony for Glens as they miss out
Final day defeat kills off their promotion hopes
Glencairn will play in the 16-team West Region Championship next season, the new 2nd tier of the West Region, after their promotion dream died on the final day of the league season.
The Glens needed a win to secure a place in the play-offs, but a narrow defeat ended the dream of top league football.
There was a hammer blow before kick off as influential striker Jay McKay was ruled out due to a concussion sustained in the away win at Troon last weekend.
McKay was replaced up front by Liam Gormley, as a very healthy crowd gathered in the afternoon sunshine, boosted by a fine travelling support, many neutrals and numerous well-wishing former Glencairn players, as well as some Ruglonians responding to the club’s appeal for local support for this crucial match.
The match took some time to get going, with Meadow looking more likely early in the early stages.
Having lost McKay’s services pre-match, there was another enormous blow for Glencairn as sweeper Rhys Donaldson had to be replaced by Craig McGregor after sustaining a nasty ankle injury when making a tackle on Boyd.
Meadow’s tactics were not difficult to spot as they repeatedly launched high balls towards strikers Boyd and Miller.
Meadow’s pressure looked to have paid off just after the half hour mark when they were awarded a penalty kick for a foul on Boyd.
It seemed harsh, but perhaps justice was done as Baker dived to his left to parry away Ben Carson’s spot kick.
The home support were hoping that the penalty save would be a turning point, but Meadow kept pressing and a diagonal cross was just out of the reach of Miller at the back post.
The pressure continued as half time approached, Carson firing high and wide, before McKay’s free kick in stoppage time was deflected off the defensive wall and looped over the bar.
In the second half Miller headed off target in the 51st minute after another dangerous set piece delivery.
It was slightly better stuff now from Glencairn, though, and Del McNab cut in from the left in the 54th minute and fired an angled shot which flew a yard or so high and wide of the far post.
Two minutes later Jamie Hamilton fed the ball into the penalty area, and the ball broke for Smith, who turned his marker and fired a shot on the stretch just over the crossbar.
Glencairn were having their best spell in the match, and Sean McGuire fed Smith who in turn set up McNab for a shot which was sliced wide.
The deadlock was broken by Meadow right on the mid point of the second half, and the creation came from probably the best player on the pitch.
Mackay broke free on the left edge of the penalty area, and his cross was flicked on to the back post where Ben Carson was waiting to head the ball back across Baker and into the net.
A shot on the turn by Gormley in the 80th minute had Meadow no.1 Shaun Newman scrambling across goal, but the ball slipped narrowly wide.
Meadow needed a two-goal win to secure automatic promotion, and they thought they had it when Jared Willet fired into the net, but the offside flag had gone up well before he fired home.
In stoppage time Glencairn went close as Smith skipped past his marker and fired over the crossbar.
It was all too little too late, though, as the Glens promotion hopes were clearly over and you could see that the players knew it as well.