Forfar Athletic 4 Hamilton Accies 3
Station Park, Forfar, 1 November 2003
Report by George Grandison
Accies managed to throw away a 2 goal halftime lead and left Station Park pointless as the game descended into chaos in the closing stages.
The early stages of this match showed little sign of the drama that was to unfold later on. The first 20 minutes saw few clear cut chances and was fairly even, although I felt Forfar were looking pacy going forward down both flanks and McEwan was called upon to save 3 times in the opening quarter hour. Accies began to control possession as the half wore on and Thomson could have done better with a back post header from a corner. Accies took the lead in 33 minutes when some loose play just outside the box gave Brian Carrigan some space. With a man open outside him I thought he might have passed but instead he hammered a great left foot shot past the stranded keeper from 18 yards. 2 minutes later and it was 2 - a Forfar defender headed the ball gently back towards his keeper about 15 yards out. The keeper fell on the ball but fumbled it and Jose Quitongo was there to walk the ball into the net. Carrigan had another glorious chance before the break when good build up play left him free on the right hand corner of the 6 yard box with only Brown to beat. Sadly he snatched at his shot which flew across the goal.
With this Accies side, there's rarely a dull moment and so it proved after half time. Forfar picked up the pace right away and ex-Accie Darren Henderson pulled one back after just 2 minutes of the 2nd half. Unfortunately I missed it, having tripped on the Station Park steps with my half-time cuppa and was still having my wounds tended to by some nice ladies from the St Andrews Ambulance team. Hopefully they won't bill me for the plasters but, just in case, I gave them Gilbert's address!
The home side were certainly beginning to look more threatening as Accies struggled to hold possession. Paul Tosh and Darren the Bleached Psycho were making some strong runs and it was no great surprise when they equalised. John Fitter failed to win a high ball and Paul Tosh brushed off the challenge of Thomson to beat McEwan easily. Next up and Darren Henderson falls on the edge of the box, pretty close to being inside. Mind you, quite how you can fall forward claiming a pen when the defender is in FRONT of you escapes me. Anyway, the ref gave a free kick outside the box and the resultant cross was cleared by Thomson.
Accies meanwhile created few chances, although Jose dribbled his way into the box before dribbling the ball into the keeper's arms. The same player then went close with a low shot from the edge of the box. With 12 minutes left I asked my mate if he thought anyone would win it or there would be no more goals. He went for the latter option. Oh dear. With 8 minutes left Fitter clashed with a home player near the goal line and the ref hesitated for a sec before giving the spot kick. Paul Tosh scored easily and Brian Carrigan was then shown a red card before the restart, presumably for dissent.
To their credit, Accies piled forward as best they could and with a few minutes left, a great through ball gave Jose space inside the box. Rather than shoot, he decided to take the ball round keeper Brown and went crashing down after knocking the ball past the keeper. The ref pointed to the spot straight away, at which point all hell brook loose. As Arthur Montford might have said, what a stramash. Paul Tosh was first on the scene, standing over Jose and shouting a lot. Aitken came charging in and the usual pushing and shoving then ensued. As Aitken, Tosh and others moved away, the incensed home keeper then took over with Jose and appeared to me to move his foot into the Accies man who was still on the ground. With Jose off getting treatment, Brown was shown a red and walked off screaming "ya f*cking dirty cheating b*stard" at Jose. The nearside assistant stood watching this and did nothing, though I actually thought Brown was going to have a go at Jose right there. Chris Aitken was standing around with the ball ready to take the penalty when he too was shown a straight red, while Paul Tosh only received a yellow and in my book started the whole thing and could easily have been off too. Thomson was only booked before John Bailey (who had come on for McPhee) stepped up and sent the substitute keeper the wrong way.
The drama wasn't over there though - straight from the kick off, Jose went on a run close to halfway, managed to stay on his feet despite a hefty tackle and was loudly booed by the home fans. He tangled with the Forfar centre half and both were booked. The home player had been booked earlier so became the 4th man off. Accies went forward looking to win it and managed to blow a good break away before the ball was sent to the other end. A cross from the left was met by a great header from 15 yards by Alan Rattray which gave big Dave no chance. The final whistle went straight away although I understand Jose was then shown the red card in the tunnel afterwards as tempers continued to flare.
Once again, full marks to Accies for entertainment and a good attacking performance, even when a man down. Once again, no points to show for it.
Hamilton: McEwan, Fitter (Forbes 85), Hodge, Thomson, Lumsden, Arbuckle, Carrigan, Aitken, Quitongo, McPhee (Bailey 76), Corcoran (Anderson 85).
Subs: Bailey, Forbes, Donnelly, Jellema, Anderson.
Forfar: Brown, Lunan, Rattray, McClune, Stewart, Byers, Sellars, Davidson, Tosh, Henderson, Taylor.
Subs: Lowing, Maher, Ogunmade, Williams, Neal Ferrie.
Referee: A Hunter
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