ALL THE ACTION FROM THE JUNIORS
Ayrshire aces dump Blackburn from Cup
Blackburn United were dumped out of the Scottish Junior Cup at the third round stage but it could have been a very different story.
Despite the final outcome, the South Division side created real problems for Girvan, who play in the West Region Super First Division.
United, the only West Lothian side to have drawn a home fixture in the third round of the premier cup competition, had the worst possible start when a corner found its way to David Cunningham.
The striker fired past Gavin King with little more than five minutes on the clock.
Cunningham made things even worse for Mark Campbell’s men before the 10-minute mark when he brilliantly turned on to Craig Reid’s throw-in to flash a half-volley beyond King and into the net.
Following the less than ideal start, the hosts found their feet as the game progressed and from a Craig Young free-kick debutant Ross Donnelly was unlucky to see his header well saved by Scott Johnstone in the Girvan goal before he pulled off another fine save from the former Fauldhouse man.
Fraser Spence was then next to sting the hands of the Ayrshire visitors’ keeper, but Johnstone was able to cope with all United were throwing at him in their bid to get back into the tie.
They would eventually get the goal they deserved on the half-hour mark when Donnelly, expertly found by Ewan Herriot, drilled a low cross which James Mildren would thump into the roof of the net at the near post.
The hosts came agonisingly close to netting an equaliser that would have surely turned the tide when captain Martin Lawrie rattled the woodwork from 20 yards.
As is often the way, though, just as United were enjoying their best spell of the game, they received a sucker-punch as Girvan restored their two-goal lead just before the break when Cunnigham completed his hat-trick with a simple tap-in after Robert Patterson’s shot was parried by King.
Less than a minute after the restart, the game appeared over as Andy Stevenson pounced on a defensive error to gleefully thump the ball home.
Blackburn, though, are made of stern stuff and they continued to cause problems, with Andy McQuillan twice going close before eventually finding the net on the hour mark.
The prolific striker timed his arrival in the heart of the 18- yard box to perfection to accept Aaron Gowans’ cut-back and slot past Johnstone.
A dipping volley from the edge of the box with just under 20 minutes remaining almost brought McQuillan a second goal but, as the pace of the game began to subside, so did United’s chances as they were hit on the break as they went for broke.
The scoring was completed with five minutes to go when Jack McDowall latched on to Patterson’s through-ball, with perfect timing to lift an exquisite shot over the advancing King and give the scoreline a flattering look.
Despite the defeat, United can be pleased with their efforts against a second tier side in the West Region, a calibre of outfit they won’t come up against in the South Division.
Their quest for promotion gets back on track this weekend when near neighbours West Calder United are the visitors to the Dem Master Community Stadium. Kick-off is 1.45pm.