Montrose bow out but Petrie insists he’s proud of his players after loss
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HIS was, at a glance, a resounding win for in-form Kilmarnock against League One Montrose but it was so much more than that.
It was a game where the Angus side more than matched their Premiership hosts and could count themselves unlucky to head back up the A9 for the second time in little under 48 hours with only a late Cammy Ballantyne consolation to show for their efforts.
Instead, it was Kilmarnock, suddenly a team of fortitude and, at times, flair, who prevailed to secure a place in the quarter-finals but it was a day where all the credit belonged to Stewart Petrie’s men.
“I’m really proud of the boys,” said the Montrose manager. “They were brave and passed the ball well.
“We’re very happy with the guys. They’ve given a good account of themselves.”
Given they had clocked up more than 350 miles and been on the end of a 5-0 hiding last week, it was no surprise to see some freshness in the Montrose line-up.
Harry Cochrane and Chris Mochrie were among the changes from the Partick Thistle defeat and their brief seemed to be to bring some effervescence to the visitors’ play.
This seemed a smart move and in contrast to Kilmarnock’s midfield, which had its usual reliance on a triumvirate of players pushing their way to their mid-30s. Still, the home side trusted themselves to match the teenagers.
Mostly they did just that, albeit Montrose started brightly. Mochrie danced away from Alan Power and Cochrane seemed at ease on the ball. But it was not long before Killie found their stride and the lead.
It was a goal which, for much of the season, you would have doubted Kilmarnock capable of scoring. The home side toyed with their guests, pulling at the Montrose threads until a Greg Kiltie-sized gap appeared. Off he scampered into the box, dragging Allan Fleming out of his goal, and in the end Kyle Lafferty was left with an easy tap-in.
For a time, this seemed to deflate the visitors while Kilmarnock turned up the tempo, Tommy Wright’s men assuming a stranglehold of the ball, twisting and turning, always probing and soon it was 2-0.
A remarkable double save from Fleming kept them at bay, only for the incessant pressure to tell when Andrew Steeves deflected a Chris Burke cross into his own goal.
That could so easily have been that.
But just as Montrose seemed to be crumbling, they found a new lease of life, ending the half the stronger. There was verve to their play and a lovely interchange opened a gap for Lewis Milne to dart in behind Killie’s sluggish back line, only for his cut-back to be prodded wastefully wide by the dangerous McLean, before Cochrane glided into space, picked up a loose ball, and pinged it just wide of Colin Doyle’s post.
As half time came and went, Kilmarnock had a decision to make: conserve energy for the relegation fight or go for the jugular? Or, in Medley’s case, go for the surprise third option of trying to keep things interesting?
The Arsenal loanee had already been hounded by Wright for dallying in the first half, but just minutes into the second he did the same. This time he turned straight into Milne and, to his horror, sent
the winger charging towards Doyle’s goal.
Perhaps Milne had too much time but rather than finding a corner he sent a simple chip straight at the Killie goalkeeper.
The angst of the visitors’ bench said it all. It felt like a must-score chance at the time and so it proved.
The game, as a contest, was ended when Kiltie sniffed out a third Killie goal, pouncing on a loose ball after Lafferty chased down Fleming to block the goalkeeper’s slack clearance straight into his team-mate’s path.
Montrose kept looking and impressing but, despite Ballantyne’s excellent late finish, this was just a stage too far.
“I don’t think anyone of the team today could say they played to their maximum ability because there were far too many mistakes throughout the team,” said Kilmarnock boss Wright, whose team will face St Mirren in the quarterfinals. “The main thing is we’re through to the next round.”