Shippy win five goal thriller.
The Shipyard came out on top in this five goal thriller against Easthouses Lily at Recreation Park on Saturday. Both teams attacked from the outset and the action never relented until the final blast of George MacDonald’s whistle. Neither team have seen that much action in the last few weeks due to postponements, however, every player gave their all in an at times heated but competitive match. Shipyard were still without the influential pair of Ben Anthony and Craig Watt due to injury though manager Lee Richardson still had a full compliment of players at his disposal.
Both teams started the game brightly making incursions into the final third but there were no clear cut chances in the opening ten minutes. Shippy had a chance in the 12th minute when Kearyn Hicks got on the end of a Shaun Keatings corner but he could not direct his header on target. Dan Thomson then shot over from the edge of the area. Mikey Couser had to be on his toes as he saved well twice as the visitors gained momentum. Shipyard were having to defend well as Easthouses pressed for the opener, however, it was the Shipyard who took the lead in the 28th minute. D. Thomson found space in the box and his driven shot took a slight deflected leaving Lily keeper Steven Hay helpless as the ball hit the back of the net. Easthouses drew level in the 43rd minute in controversial circumstances as Shaun Hill drove the ball in off the far post. Shipyard appealed for offside insisting that an Easthouses player had flicked the ball on rendering Hill offside but the ref was having none of it. The visitors thought they had taken the lead a minute later and they were extremely aggrieved that the goal was chalked off, for hand ball apparently.
Hay made a good save and Murphy headed wide as Shippy made a fast start to the second half. The pressure paid off as Shippy were awarded a penalty in the 54th minute as Keatings was fouled in the box by Ryan McQueenie. The visitor’s protests were loud and long but once the dust had settled Murphy coolly converted the spot kick. The lead was quickly doubled as a deep cross to the back post was headed in from a tight angle by Matty Robertson for his first Shipyard goal. The game continued to ebb and flow and Couser got down low to save a driven shot while at the other end Murphy hit the outside of the post with a left foot strike. Easthouses reduced the deficit with ten minutes remaining when substitute Logan Imrie drove the ball into the net from around twelve yards out. As the game entered added time Couser had to be brave as he dived at the feet of the Easthouses forward to clear the danger and in doing so ensured his team got all three points.
Richardson was happy after the match when he said “I thought we played some decent stuff today and created a few good chances. Big Kris was a handful for their defence and he was unlucky to hit the post.”
Next week (03/02/2024) we welcome Edinburgh United to Recreation Park for a King Cup 1st Round tie. Kick-off is at 2.30pm.
Burntisland Shipyard: M. Couser; E. Bauld; M. Robertson; I. Millar; K. Hicks (R. Watt); S. Keatings (M. James); M. Gibb; CJ. Thomson; D. Thomson; K. Murphy; S. Glancy. Unused Subs: S. Costello; H. Kay; C. Lewis; B. Dickson; L. Ross.
Easthouses Lily: S. Hay; L. Smith; C. McBeth; R. McQueenie; T. Rogan; A. Anderson; D. Leslie; N. Janczyk; C. Dyet; S. Hill; S. Barrie. Subs: D. Simpson; M. Hunter; J. Murray; J. Neilson; C. Mason; L. Imrie.
Referee: G. MacDonald.