Shippy stung as Thistle close in on title.
The fact that a win would guarantee the visitors promotion and possibly the title, had Bathgate slipped up at Oakley, ensured there was a good crowd and a lot of interest in this match at Recreation Park on Saturday. The Armadale contingent would have been delighted with the 4-0 win meaning that one more win will make them champions, indeed should Bathgate fail to win all their remaining matches it will be all over no matter what happens. The Shipyard team showed two changes from the one that won at Peebles last week with Mark James and Ethan Bauld replacing Kieran Crielly and Elliot Jowitt.
The visitors started with a purpose about their play as they took the game to Shippy from the off and they went very close in the fifth minute when Dominic Kane and Craig Baillie both hit the frame of the goal. Shipyard were riding their luck on occasion as they defended with grit and determination to keep Armadale out. The defence was finally breeched in the 21st minute when Shippy failed to clear their lines and although David Millar didn’t connect cleanly with the ball his shot still eluded Kacper Okupnik and found the corner of the net. Thistle got a quick fire second as again defensive frailties were punished, and Ryan Robertson was on hand to knock the ball home. There was a rare chance for Shippy when a corner fell to Jordan Galloway, however, the midfielder couldn’t get his shot on target. Okupnik them made a fantastic double save on the stoke of half time to still give his team a glimmer of hope.
That optimism of getting back into the match dissipated within minutes of the restart when Jubon Abubakar shot beyond Okupnik after he latched onto a through ball. Robertson produced a great finish smashing the ball into the top corner to make it 4-0 in the 54th minute. In the 63rd minute Thistle keeper Andrew Murphy produced a sensational save as he leapt up to tip away Jordan Hunter’s powerful header from a few yards out. The goalmouth action dried up in the final minutes of the match with the result not in doubt and a whole raft of substitutions made. There was a concerning moment late on when a clash of heads between Galloway and Ewan Herriot resulted in the latter receiving treatment for several minutes before, he was taken from the field of play. Happily, it was confirmed afterwards that the player was not seriously injured.
After the match Shippy manager said, “We shot ourselves in the foot with some poor defending in the first half giving us a mountain to climb against a team who had a lot to play for today.”
Our next match is against Easthouses Lily MW at Newbattle Complex on Saturday 3rd May 2025. Kick-off is at 2.30pm.
Burntisland Shipyard: K. Okupnik; D. Brockie (I. Millar 71’); E. Bauld; I. Marr; M. James (M. Robertson 71’); D. McBay; S. Forster (C. Bell 57’); A. McAndrew (B. Kerr 57’); M. Gibb; J. Galloway; J. Hunter (K. Beard 71’).
Armadale Thistle: A. Murphy; J. Sayers; G. Hamilton; M. Millar; E. Herriot (C. Shanks 72’); A. Higgins (K. Kelly 63’); J. Abubakar; D. Kane; C. Baillie (R. Feeney 68’); A. Ramage (J. Gillespie 63’); R. Robertson. Unused Sub: C. Nelson.
Referee: T. Martin.