U19s v Ross County

Three second half goals sees off highlanders threat

DUNFERMLINE 3 ROSS COUNTY 0

The weather conditions were overcast with occasional sunshine breaking through. There wasn`t much wind and certainly not enough to have any effect on the game.

Dunfermline appeared to win the toss and chose to kick towards the Cowdenbeath end of the stadium. Dunfermline had no substitute keeper in their squad so fingers crossed!

The home side started with real purpose and in the 2nd minute a neat interchange between Stefan Scougall and Steven Leslie almost saw Ryan Thomson clean through on goal but the pass was a fraction too hard and the keeper easily claimed the ball.

In 4th minute another period of enterprising play by the young pars produced another chance when Blair McWhirter crossed the ball into Leslie but a timely block by Fraser prevented what looked like a good chance.

White nearly opened the scoring in the 7th minute following a terrific cross from John McDonald but his header just cleared the bar.

The pars team were dictating events and Ross County at this stage were finding it difficult to match the endeavour and skill shown by their opponents.

Following a stramash in the Dunfermline box Ross County could have taken the lead in the 10th minute when the Pars couldn`t clear their lines despite several attempts to do so. The ball eventually fell to MacKenzie who from a tight angle at the edge of the 6 yard box forced a good save from Craig Bald at his near post. Some composure would have sufficed on this occassion but thankfully no damage was sustained.

Perhaps the concentration of the Pars back four wained momentarily in 15th minute as a straightforward ball from Ross through the middle nearly found Fraser who just failed to connect with the pass which would have given him a clear run in on goal.

In 17 minutes Dunfermline had a great chance to take the lead. Rees Smith ran forward towards the box and gave a delightful pass to Leslie, on the left edge of the box who sublimely turned inside two defenders before curling a shot agonisingly inches past the right hand post with the keeper well beaten.

Ross County were begining to look pretty dangerous on the break and another chance should have been taken by Gardiner who, when clean through following a great pass from Fraser in 19th minute, rushed his shot and fired timidly past the left hand post when he had plenty of time to steady himself and pick his spot.

White was guilty of squandering a golden chance in the 29th minute. McDonald had passed the ball to White in the box and he drifted past the attention of two defenders but decided to shoot from the corner of the six yard box when there were at least two better options available to him if he had looked up. However can you blame a striker for trying to score after producing good skills but the ball from the shot came back with a satellite attached to it!

What looked like a good goal midway through the first half was chalked off by the referee for offside. A pity really as it came from the best move of the half. A great exchange between McGregor and Smith saw the young left back burst into the box and he attempted to curl the keeper and place the ball into the far right hand corner but Donnelly (who was having a very good game for Ross County) somehow managed to tip the ball onto the bar. The rebound fell to Leslie but the referee who was well positioned deamed the score offside.

In 26th minute Sutter received an injury and had to be replaced by Finlayson. This meant that Moorehouse shifted into the centre of defence and Finlayson took up the right back position.

Dunfermline were really pushing forward looking for that elusive goal but three times Donnelly made really good saves to prevent any scoring. The best save followed an impressive build up by Dunfermline which saw Leslie feeding Scougall who in turn crossed for Thomson who saw his well hit drive from about 12 yards well saved by Donnelly. The Ross County defence were playing there part as well by throwing there bodies in front of several shots.

In 37th minute Graham Fraser was booked for scything down Leslie but the resultant free kick saw a shot by Thomson speed towards the mid point between the goals and the corner flag.

Right on the stroke of half time Ross County should have taken the lead. Lee Fraser strode forwards with the ball at his feet and from 25 yards hit a powerful shot straight at Bald. However the keeper could not hold it and it bounced right in front of Gardiner who, from all of six yards, managed to hit the onrushing keeper on the chest. As the ball spun upwards McGregor headed the ball to safety. The Ross County players were claiming for a penalty as they adjudged that McGregor had climbed over Gardiner to head the ball. The referee didn`t see any infringement and waved play on.

Dunfermline were certainly the better team. They looked sharper, quicker and their movement on and off the ball was certainly of a higher standard.
Ross County however were playing well using the counter attack and Dunfermline could easily have lost one or two goals in the first half. Concentration must be maintained for the next 45 minutes and that elusive first goal would surely arrive.

Half Time: Dunfermline 0 Ross County 0

The second half started the same way as the first. Dunfermline were playing well and were keen to embrace that first goal.

The first chance arrived in the 51st minute when McGregor threaded through a terrific pass to Leslie who tried to shoot whilst on the run but he appeared to snatch at it and the ball screamed over the bar.

Brace yourself for this and if your name is Steven Leslie you will not want to relive this episode. In the 54th minute McDonald shuttled the ball to Leslie and he quickly passed to Scott who had his shot blocked. The ball broke to Leslie who from about 6 yards out and with an open goal at his mercy decided to place the ball right of the goal. What a miss but this is a team game and the players as one told him to forget about it. A point I`m sure that would not be missed in the dressing room!

Two further saves from the keeper kept the pars at bay and in the 60th minute Donnelly made another outstanding save from White who attempted to lob him from the left hand corner of the box. The keeper stretched up and just managed to claw the ball away to safety. At this point it looked like Dunfermline would never score.

Next to try a strike on goal was Rees who in the 62nd minute hit a fierce drive which was deflected onto the post and out for a corner.

Finally the breakthrough that Dunfermline thoroughly deserved. In the 64th minute Scougall collected the ball about 30 yards out and played a good pass to the overlapping Smith. He put in a lovely cross which was met by THOMSON, who from about 4 yards out, thumped the ball into the back of the net. A well worked goal and fully deserved by a now dominant Dunfermline.

Two minutes later and another goal. This time McDonald drifted in from the right hand side of the box and he passed to Thomson who had his shot partially blocked but the deflection carried forward to LESLIE who thankfully atoned for his earlier miss by striking the ball into the net.

Ross County at last managed to get the ball up the other end of the park but a good shot from Ross was comfortably collected by Bald at his near post.

In 85 minutes a controversial back pass was given by the referee, much to the disgust of the Ross County players. Shakespeare would have been happy with this as a comedy of errors ensued. Dunfermline had the free kick about 16 yards out and when the ball was tapped sideways to the intended striker no one was watching and the ball was gleefully cleared up the park by Ross County.

In the last minute Donnelly made another great save preventing an own goal when McWhirter`s shot was deflected towards his own goal by a Ross County defender.

With almost the last kick of the game Dunfermline scored a third goal. WHITE was released down the left hand side and he made his way into the box before pristinely chipping the ball over the keeper into the far side of the net, a really classy finish.

A thorougly deserved win for Dunfermline. In the end the scoreline could have been much bigger but credit must go to the Ross County keeper Peter Donnelly who made several excellent saves to prevent a much heavier loss. Errant shooting and possible lack of composure or decision making did not help Dunfermlines cause but the signs are good and a win is very acceptable.

One last comment. The much maligned referee had a very good game, he was hardly noticeable.

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