St Modans fall short of final spot

St Modan’s HS ........ 1 Braidhurst HS ......... 1

St Modan’s HS came within five minutes of the Scottish Cup Final, before a late equaliser and penalty heartache saw Braidhurst HS progress to May’s final at the National Stadium.

A tight first half saw few clear cut chances with St Modan’s keeper Ronan Fallens equal to all Braidhurst had to offer, whilst at the other end Aidan McKeown was unlucky to see an effort blocked on the line.

St Modan’s went ahead just before the hour when’s Thomas McGhee headed home from a wonderful Jamie Munro free kick. Keeper Fallens was then called on to keep Braidhurst at bay, before the post came to the local side’s rescue when Braidhurst missed from the spot with 20 minutes remaining.

With the clock running down, however, St Modan’s resolve was finally broken as Braidhurst levelled from close range.

The game went straight to penalties and despite Fallens saving the first Braidhurst kick, the Lanarkshire side held their nerve to progress by 4-3 and see the Saints miss out on a Hampden final in the cruellest of fashion.

St Modan’s; Fallens, Weir, Kilgannon, Munro, Banks, Sanda, McKeown, MacDonald, Green (McGhee 45) Williamson, McGuckin.

St Modan’s keeper Ronan Fallens, who has sat on the bench for Stirling Albion this season, turned in a fine display for Scottish Schools against Northern ireland at Cliftonville on Friday.

He made a string of great saves but was powerless to stop two late goals as the hoem side won 2-1.

The Scots squad included Stirling Albion youth players Kyle Banner, who captained the team, and George Stanger, who was an unused substitute.

The trio now face their final game in the campaign when they meet Republic of Ireland at Renfrew FC tomorrow (Thursday) at 7pm. All three are likely to feature in an SSFA team coached by St Modan’s HS teacher Craig Johnstone who is also a coach in the Binos youth set up.