AT the halfway stage of the Scottish Youth FA Challenge Cup qualifying round tie between AC Oxgangs and Spartans Whites, the teams were locked at 0-0 and hardly anyone would have thought that Oxgangs would go on to score nine goals.
A truly magnificent rearguard action by Spartans keeper Douglas McGregor, aided by inspired central defender Duncan Mollon and the rest of the Spartans team, defied everything AC Oxgangs threw at them in the first stage, but the turning point came i
n the last minute of the first half.
McGregor somehow managed to block a tremendous point-blank shot to keep his goal intact, but the brave keeper injured himself pulling off this superb save and he was unable to continue in the second half.
Spartans had only 11 players available and Bruno Shaw took over in goals at the restart and this intrepid young man was bombarded with shots.
With only ten players throughout the second period, Spartans could put up only token resistance and the goals poured in to match the rain that was thumping down at Sighthill Park.
Connaire Lyons broke the deadlock for AC Oxgangs in their first attack on Shaw's goal and the floodgates opened as they rain got heavier. Lyons added another from a cross-cum-shot from the right and Lewis Rahimian found the back of the net to make it 3-0 with the visiting team having their work cut out to stem the tide.
Cameron Smeaton got in on the goal-scoring act with a shot from the right and that goal was followed by another from Matthew Gumke to make it 5-0.
Smeaton was on target again for the rampant AC Oxgangs and Shaw had to pick the ball out of the net three more times before his misery was ended by the final whistle from soaked match official George Mathieson.
Thomas Gilchrist made it 7-0, followed by goals from Lyons and Ross Hannah.
Spartans Whites are a new team and they play in Division Four of the South East Region Youth Leagues, while AC Oxgangs are from the Second Division. With a full squad available, Spartans could have made a game of it, but when McGregor could not take his place in goals in the second half, the home outfit ran riot.
Never at any stage in the game did the Spartans players give up, however, and they look to have some very promising players in their squad.
To lose nine goals in any game is hard to take, to do so in the pouring rain made it an even worse experience.
AC Oxgangs looked very sharp in front of goals in the second half and they too look a well-coached squad of players in their AC Milan colours.
Both teams were immaculately turned out at the start of the game, but all the players, coaches and spectators on the sidelines were totally bedraggled by the end of the match.
The full article contains 506 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
