Accies came from behind to draw with Queen of the South at Palmerston on Saturday. John O'Neil gave the home side the lead after 10 minutes with a well struck penalty and the Doonhamers were worthy of their half time lead. However, Accies took charge in the second half after manager Billy Reid brought on both Mark Gilhaney and Richard Offiong. Willie Gibson of Queens was ordered off after 52 minutes for his second yellow card. It was Offiong who scored for Accies late in the game to earn his club a point, but Accies clearly merited all three.
Palmerston Park, Dumfries
Saturday, 9th December 2006
Queen of the South 1 Hamilton Accies 1
Accies came from behind to gain a point in what turned out to be a real "game of two halves" down at Palmerston. Manager Billy Reid made just one change to the team that had drawn with Livingston last week, with Marvyn Wilson replacing Tony Stevenson. The big news was that both Richard Offiong and Mark Gilhaney were on the bench, with Gilhaney having missed the last 7 games due to injury.
Accies got off to a good start and had the majority of the ball for the opening minutes. They created one "half chance", with Kevin Sharp's deflected free kick being well saved by Craig Hinchcliffe in the Queen's goal. One notable feature of the opening part of the game was the number of fouls being committed by the home side.
Ironically, they were to take the lead following the first Accies foul in the game. The goal was entirely preventable, with David McEwan's attempted clearance being partially blocked by a home player. He tried again but did little better. As McEwan scampered back towards his area, the ball was sent through the middle of the Accies defence and McEwan was adjudged by referee Tumilty to have blocked the Queen's forward illegally. John O'Neill did his usual expert job of the penalty, cracking the ball high down the middle to give his side a rather undeserved lead.
The goal not only gave the home team a real confidence boost, it also shook Accies for quite a while. Queens attacked directly and frequently and Accies were probably quite fortunate not to concede another goal before the break. One header from a corner kick seemed to be saved by Dave McEwan's face, while another attack came to nothing when Graham Weir first missed the cross and then flung himself to the turf in the hope of winning another penalty for his side. the bad news for Accies was that Tom Parratt was injured in the collision and although he limped back onto the park and finished the half, he was to be replaced at the interval.
Accies only rarely managed to threaten the Doonhamer's goal, with an Alex Neil shot from the edge of the area being the best effort created. It was well saved by Craig Hinchcliffe but he was left rooted to the spot just before the break. David Winters thumped a superb shot from the edge of the area but it struck the underside of the crossbar before being cleared. There were a couple of yellow cards in the first half, with both Marvyn Wilson and Willie Gibson seeing the wrong side of referee Mike Tumilty.
Billy Reid made a couple of changes at half time, with the injured Parratt and the subdued Winters being replaced by Richard Offiong and Mark Gilhaney. Both players were given a very warm reception buy the travelling Accies support. The first notable incident of the second half came when, after a midfield "stramash", referee Tumilty showed Willie Gibson his second yellow card of the afternoon and he got first use of the showers.
Accies settled very quickly after this and went on to dominate the remainder of the game.
However, they found it hard to create genuine goalscoring opportunities despite their efforts. Richard Offiong had a marvellous 45 minutes and went on several threatening solo runs at the Queens defence. Mark Gilhaney did well too and his old teammate Scott MacKenzie was given a torrid time. Half chances came and went but Accies finally grabbed the goal they deserved after 77 minutes. More trickery from Offiong finished with a shot from 15 yards that was well saved by Hinchcliffe. he dived full length to push the ball out wide. It was gathered by Paul McLeod, whose cutback was cracked home by Richard Offiong to his obvious delight.
Accies had the home team "on the ropes" after this but were unable to deliver the winning blow. Accies had a debatable claim for a penalty near the end when, after more trickery, Mark Gilhaney's cross was handled inside the penalty area. It would have been a soft award but the appeal was denied by the referee. Gilhaney played on and won the ball at the touchline. He cut it back into the danger area but Brian Wake wasn't able to get much purchase on the ball and Hinchcliffe saved easily.
Accies had a fright at the other end when Marvyn Wilson's headed passback was fumbled by Dave McEwan, but Wilson was able to step in ahead of the Queens player and clear things up. Right at the end there was a clear indication that it wasn't Accies day when the ball broke to Offiong just outside the area. His hurried shot cleared the goal, the terracing and the boundary wall before ending up in the street outside. With that, the referee called a halt to the game.
This was a very disappointing result from yet another game that should have been won. The home side were tough opponents but the points were there for the taking. Best for Accies were the tireless Parratt and Elebert at the back, McArthur and McLeod in midfield and the excellent Offiong up front.
Queen of the South: Hinchcliffe, Henderson, Lauchlan, Jim Thomson, Paton, Scally, Moon (Callaghan 56), O'Neill (Robertson 90), Gibson, Weir (MacKenzie 65), Barrowman. Subs Not Used: Scott, Andy Thomson.
Sent Off: Gibson (52). Booked: Gibson. Goal: O'Neill 9 pen.
Hamilton Accies: McEwan, Parratt (Gilhaney 46), Sharp, Elebert, Easton, Wilson, McLeod, McArthur, Neil, Wake, Winters (Offiong 46). Subs Not Used: McCarthy, Gibson, Jellema.
Booked: Wilson, Wake. Goal: Offiong 77.
Att: 1,735
Ref: M Tumilty
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