Accies 1 Cowdenbeath 0: Saturday, 26 October 2002

Scottish League Division 2, New Douglas Park, Hamilton

Saturday, 26 October 2002

Report by Gilbert Mowat

Accies continued their revival with a narrow victory over Cowdenbeath at a sparsely populated and rain lashed New Douglas Park.

Chris Hillcoat decided to stick with the same team that had drawn at New Broomfield 7 days previously, although it was good to see experienced players like Eddie Cunnington and Mark Nelson were on the bench after missing lengthy spells though injury. With Michael Martin taking part in the pre-match warm-up and Allan Russell managing the full 90 minutes of a midweek reserve game, it's encouraging that some of the more experienced players will soon be back in the team.

You should be under no illusions about it. While the team has recovered from the 2 recent humpings at the hands of Raith Rovers and Stranraer, they still have a very long way to go before they will be able to compete with the best teams in the division. If that means that some of the younger players return to the reserves for a spell then so be it.

I would say that the visitors just about shaded it in the first half, with more possession and a better idea of what to do with the ball. They created the two best opportunities in the half but were unable to find the net. First of all, Graeme Brown brought a fine diving save out of Faldo in the Accies goal and then one of their attackers, left with only the 'keeper to beat, tried to be too fancy and back-heeled the ball towards goal instead of settling himself and placing it. The ball beat Faldo, but was travelling so slowly that Ian Dobbins collected it well before it could cross the line.

Accies did reasonably well in the first half but only made the visiting goalkeeper make one easy save. I thought Mahdi Elfallah did quite well in the first period but it was interesting to see the deterioration in the performance of Johnny Walker as the game progressed. He started out reasonably well but then fell away to absolute mediocrity. It may be all right for Paul Lambert to hit square passes all the time, but we need something more creative.

Things perked up after the interval and Accies began to dominate the game for long spells. Martin Bonnar had a clear sight of goal about 10 yards out but could only deflect Stuart Callaghan's brilliant cross wide of the goal. Just before that, however, the visitors nearly took the lead when their lumbering ginger centre half Keith Wilson saw his header from a corner bounce down and then hit the top of the crossbar. The corner had been taken by Lee Dair, who was subbed a few minutes later. It was funny to see his angry reaction to being replaced and even better to see him getting a roasting from diminutive coach Mickey Weir because of his poor attitude.

At this stage, the poor weather reared its ugly head and the heavens opened. This provided those of us in the stand with the spectacle of the 8 or 9 non paying fans on the mound opposite the stand getting a right good soaking. This wasn't the Red Division, it was the Drenched Division.

The game now looked as if it was heading for a goalless draw. However, Brian "The Bee" McPhee still had a major part to play in the game. With just under 10 minutes left, a good ball down the left wing set him free. He outsprinted the defender Wilson (no surprise there) and headed into the penalty area. Just as it looked as if he had hit the ball too far ahead of himself, he got to it just before the visiting goalkeeper and tucked it under his body and into the net. The players and fans went crazy and the sense of relief that swept around the stadium was almost tangible.

With Accies leading at last, there was still plenty of time for the Fifers to mount a couple of late attacks. Ian Macfarlane had to be on his toes first to intercept a dangerous cross after it had been headed by Sean Sweeney and secondly to block a close range effort right at the end. But the equaliser never came and Accies held on to grab the well deserved three points.

The referee, Gerry Mitchell, was a bit officious and on m,ore than one occasion stopped the play when the advantage rule could have been employed. He booked three Cowden players but there wasn't a bad foul in the match.

Hilly made three substitutions. First of all, he replaced the ineffective Johnny Walker after an hour with Eddie Cunnington taking his place for his first performance of the season. Eddie looked fairly sharp and will obviously take over from Paul McDonald on the left when he's fully fit. Gareth Armstrong had a quiet game and was replaced by Mark Keegans near the end. Finally, Brian McPhee went down clutching his left thigh near the end and was replaced by Mark Nelson. The Bee must therefore be an injury worry for the Forfar match at New Douglas Park next week.

So it was a vital three points in what will undoubtedly be a long and difficult season for the hoops.

Macfarlane, Ally Graham, McDonald, Dobbins, Sweeney, Elfallah, Bonnar, Walker (Cunnington 60), Armstrong (Keegans 84), McPhee (Nelson 89), Callaghan

© Accies World 2002

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