After losing the first league fixture against Strathclyde Uni back in November (although Milanda were awarded the points because Strathclyde fielded too many trialists) Milanda approached the return league fixture expecting a hard and difficult game. In reality it was a stroll in Pollok Park after a superb first half put Milanda out of sight of the Strathclyde youngsters.
Clockwatch
1 min – Goal for Milanda. Once again Milanda strike early. A corner from Reid to the backpost is met by Early whose header is blocked by Uni defender. The ball falls kindly for Coyle who has time to pick his spot and loops his header over the keeper’s head ito the net.
4 mins Scott shows neat footwork in midfield and manages to beat four men before hitting a forward pass.
7 mins A quick throw in by Murray has Uni on the backfoot. A poor clearance from Uni goalkeeper gives Scott and chance from distance but his 35 yard lob is just off target.
10 mins Strathclyde Uni’s No 9 is sent off for violent conduct. Seems a harsh decision although he did have a kick at Early but general consensus was there wasn’t much in it. Uni No 12 is also booked for dissent.
11mins Andy Wilson almost kicks the ball with his right foot.
21 mins Goal for Milanda. Coyle bamboozles the Uni defence down at the left hand corner flag. The ball is played across the 18-yard line and Addison connects sweetly and hits a low right foot drive into the left hand corner.
24 mins Fawns tries his luck with a shot from 30 yards but keeper saves.
29 mins Goal for Milanda. Wilson plays a neat one-two with the Uni fullback and the ball breaks to Reid who takes a touch before hitting a glorious 30 yard lob which leaves the Uni keeper helpless.
32 mins Uni finally put some pressure on Milanda but 20 yard shot goes over the bar.
42 mins Goal for Milanda. Again more excellent work from Coyle and his cross finds Reid unmarked and he clinically scores his second and Milanda’s fourth.
43 mins Reid goes looking for hat-trick and is unlucky with a right foot shot.
44 mins Uni unlucky when a corner finds a man unmarked but they are unable to take advantage.
Half Time AC Milanda 4 Strathclyde Uni 0.
The sending off clearly helped the Milanda clause but overall the first 45 mins was probably the best we’ve played all season. Some quick and accurate passing had the Uni chasing shadows and combined with some great finishing Milanda could be well pleased with their performance.
The first 15 mins of the second half belonged to Strathclyde Uni. They deserve a lot of credit for not throwing in the towel and when possible they tried to play football. There endeavour was rewarded with a goal to rival Reid’s first for goal of the game. After Milanda failed to clear the ball a knock on was met with an overhead kick that gave Preston no chance as it found the bottom right hand corner.
61 mins The Uni goal wakes Milanda up and Scott has a great chance after a pass from Coyle leaves him with only the keeper to beat but his shot goes over the bar.
64 mins A Coyle shot hits the post.
65 mins MacKenzie replaces Grant.
66 mins game descends into farce after MacKenzie and Grant are both booked after failing to inform the referee of the substitution.
70 mins Should be goal number five for Milanda after a long throw in falls between Coyle, Murray and Reid but the final touch puts the ball over the bar.
75 mins MacKay on for Scott. He remembers to tell ref he’s come on.
79 mins Reid is too eager to get his hat-trick after hitting a shot wide that should really have been crossed into the box.
80 mins Mackay rounds Uni goalkeeper and looks to be brought down in the process. The ref waves play on and Murray’s shot is deflected for a corner.
81 mins Goal for Milanda. A great interchange of passes finally sees Milanda get goal number five. Coyle beats three in the middle of the park before slipping the ball to Murray. His forward pass to MacKay is cut back to Preston and his shot hits the right hand post. The rebound falls perfectly for Reid who takes his time before hitting a shot underneath the Uni goalkeeper for his hat-trick.
82 mins Hyslop replaces hat-trick hero Reid for his first action of the season.
85 mins Experience of Hyslop shows through as he pings passes all over the park. One in particular gives Murray a chance to home in on goal but he can’t quite hit the target.
89 mins Goal for Milanda. A Wilson free kick from 22 yards is only partially saved by the Uni keeper. Early has two attempts to bury the rebound the second of which is clearly handled by the Uni defender on the line but before the ref can blow for a penalty Murray blasts the ball into the net to make it 6-1 for Milanda.
90 mins Preston has a rare save to make when a 25 yard free kick forces him to punch for a corner. Referee blows for full time shortly after.
All the hard work was done in the first half and the foot was taken off the gas in the second. The first half performance was the best 45 of the season. All credit to Strathclyde for trying to continue to play football even when going down to 10 men but even with 11 they would have been lucky to cope with Milanda’s passing game in that first half.
Website man of the match – Some great performances this week that made selection difficult but only one winner this week and that’s Hyslop. Nah only kidding Mark Reid had his best ever game in a Milanda jersey and expertly despatched his goals. He had tough competition from Murray and Coyle but overall the whole team played it’s part in an excellent performance.