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Cowdenbeath 1 v 2 Albion Rovers |  |
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Cowdenbeath 1 v 2 Albion Rovers | |
| Bell's League Third Division 12th February 2005 |
Attendance : 254.
Scorers ~ Cowdenbeath : Black (o.g. 22). Albion Rovers : Potter (47), Gordon (71).
With the omission of Marc McKenzie due to suspension and Chris Silvestro who has a bruised foot from the squad a very young Rovers side took on the team placed third in the division and won.
Cowdenbeath dominated the early exchanges without having a shot of note. In 8 minutes Neil Wallace crossed the ball for Gary Fleming but he only managed a glancing header which was wide of the mark.
The Blue Brazil took the lead in 22 minutes when a Darren Gribben cross came in and Rovers' Danny Black jumped and headed the ball down into his own net. A couple of minutes later a weak Fleming shot was past the Cowden post.
A Mercer "goal" was disallowed for an obvious offside before Gary Fusco got Cowdenbeath's best chance of the match when he rattled the ball off Rovers goalpost. The last action of the first half was Jonathan Bain leaning back when he let loose his shot over the Rovers crossbar.
Second Half
Gaffer Jimmy Lindsay brought on strikers Lee Wilson and Wayne Gordon at half-time and two minutes later the score was level. A Stirling corner whizzed into the Cowden box, Innes Ritchie tried to head the ball clear but it found Kerr Potter who headed the ball into the net before 'keeper Carlin could intercede.
Next Gary Fleming swung a cross into the Cowden box to John Bradford who spun on the spot to shoot straight to Carlin. The home side tried to hit back with Darren Gribben shooting but Chris Fahey was equal to the attempt and plucked the ball high from the air. Minutes later a weak attempt by Cowdenbeath quickly turned into a Rovers attack which ended with a decent Bradford shot missing by a small margin.
Bradford came close once more, this time with a header following a Stirling free-kick. A minute later a Stirling screamer from a 35 yard free-kick was inches too high.
Rovers were in control now and Scott Friel hit a strong free-kick from just outside the Cowden box which went straight to the 'keeper. He failed to control the ball immediately but recovered in time as Rovers players approached him.
A poor shot by Rovers preceded what proved to be the winning goal. Trialist Wayne Gordon was well placed to have a relatively easy tap-in after a Bradford header.
A minute later captain Jim Mercer almost put Rovers further ahead when he ended up on the ground 6 yards out in control of the ball, unfortunately he failed to get any strength behind his shot.
McCallum and Ritchie shot over the Rovers crossbar as time ticked away. The game was 20 seconds from the final whistle and Rovers were attacking when 'keeper Carlin felt it necessary to use his hands to save a couple of yards outside of his box. The stopper was shown the red card by Mr. Fyfe and David Williams made way for replacement 'keeper Allan Fleming Williams to go between the sticks. Jered Stirling took the free-kick which Williams held at the second attempt.
Williams and McKeown of Cowdenbeath and Mercer of Rovers received yellow cards during the match.
Summary
A good all round performance by a very young Albion Rovers side and man of the match goes to Ricky Patrick for his all round play. The thought of East Stirlingshire coming close in the table is fast becoming a distant memory and East Fife are now firmly in Jimmy Lindsay's sights in 8th place.
Cowdenbeath : Carlin, Shand, Williams (Fleming 90), Fusco, McKeown, Ritchie, Mauchlen, McHale, McCallum, Gribben (Buchanan 77), Bain (Kelly 77). Subs Not Used : Campbell, McGregor.
Albion Rovers : Fahey, Friel, McInulty, Black (Gordon 46), Wallace (Wilson 46), Potter, Patrick, Stirling, Fleming (McCaul 80), Bradford, Mercer. Subs Not Used : Richardson, Peat.
Referee : I. Fyfe
Man of the Match - Ricky Patrick
