Report

Report: Jim McAuley, Photography: Craig McGhee, Media: Ross Newlands.

LADY LUCK DESERTS THE TALBOT

TALBOT: Armour, McPherson. Schoneville, Wilson, Slooves, Boyle (Clark), Sime (Langan), Gillies, Boyd, McAvoy, Wardrope (Thomson). UNUSED SUBS: Kerr, Nimmo, Walker, Abed

JOHNSTONE BURGH: Scullion, Mullen, Gilday, Eadie, O’Neil, Davidson, Mason. Dorrans, S.McCann, Smith, Kerr. SUBS:  Trialist, Law, Cook, G.McCann, Rossiter, Christie, McDonald.

Although there was an absence of goals over the ninety minutes, this was a highly entertaining match where Talbot will feel hard done by after having a goal disallowed, hitting the bar as well as being denied another goal in the craziest of circumstances.

Beechwood was bathed in winter sun which was a far cry from twenty four hours previous, where Ayrshire was hit by Storm Eowyn. No doubt the milder weather brought the punters out as a healthy crowd had gathered on the Beechwood terracing.

Burgh showed their intentions early on and in the opening five minutes had won two free kicks where a Dorrans lob into the box from just shy of the half way line was headed well over by O’Neil and this was followed by an attempt from Dorrans from twenty five yards that just went over the bar.

Talbot made their first attack on goals on the ninth minute when McAvoy

nodded a Schoneville throw in which Boyd picked up, but as he was being ushered to the bye-line by the visiting defence he smashed the ball across the goals but Scullion did well to smother.

The game was flowing from end to end and Talbot had a let off in the tenth minute when Mason got in the back of the Talbot defence before rifling a low ball across the goalmouth but there were no takers.

The Talbot faithful thought that they had taken the lead in the eighteenth minute when Boyd slipped the ball wide to Gillies who thundered a shot on target but Scullion managed to palm the ball away for a corner. Wardrope’s cross from the resultant corner saw Slooves get his head to the ball but it went well over the bar.

Both sides were going at it hammer and tongs but it was not until the twenty third minute that a chance was fashioned and this fell to Kerr who picked up a pass from Smith, made a beeline for the home goals but was met by a robust tackle from Sime. However the loose ball squirmed back to Kerr, but his resulting shot flew over the bar.

On the half hour mark it was Talbot’s turn to turn the screw when Sime flashed a great cross into the box but McAvoy got under the ball and headed harmlessly over. The first half’s big talking points came firstly in the thirty seventh minute when the visiting defence failed to clear a long ball which Boyd managed to exploit and as he bore down on goals it looked like Davidson was all over him resulting in the big striker going down in the box, but the referee waved play on. Seven minutes later Schonevill went down in the box when he looked to be impeded but this saw the match official flash the yellow card at the Talbot player. 

The second half started with controversy when five minutes after the restart Sime and Gillies were giving the visitors a tough time just outside the box which saw Gillies pass into the path of Wardrope who dispatched the ball past Scullion and into the bottom corner of the net. This resulted in the dugout side linesman flagging for offside as the players celebrated. The decision was not met well by the home bench and goalkeeping coach Brian Hewitt  was carded.

Ten minutes later Talbot nearly broke the deadline when Slooves gathered a loose ball before passing to Gillies who, finding himself in acres of room, strode forward and lashed a twenty five yard screamer just past Scullions post.

Burgh had a good ten minutes pressure just after this when on the sixty fifth minute Smith out jumped Wilson to head towards goal but his effort was easily held by Armour. Minutes later the big keeper made a hash of a Kerr strike when the ball came off his knee, but thankfully Slooves was there to hook the ball to safety.

With the game now into the last quarter a moment of class saw Boyd let a Schoneville throw in roll past him before chipping Scullion which saw the ball come off the bar where it fell to McAvoy who’s effort was blocked by the keeper before being cleared by the Burgh defence.

The game should have been put to bed in the eighty sixth minute when a Gillies pass into the feet of Boyd was passed across the the face of the goal straight to the unmarked Thomson who only needed a six inch tap in but the ball seemed to bobble in front of him hitting his arm in the process and even though he managed to get the ball into the net the referee had already blown for an infringement.

With minutes remaining Neill McPherson had the last chance of the match but he headed well past the post.

All in all it was a decent display by Talbot against a top side, although on another day it would have resulted in three points.