Clyde 1 Dunfermline 1
Saturday, 28th Jan 2023cinch League One: same starting eleven as against Partick Thistle. Martin Rennie (4) 1-0: Josh Edwards (38) 1-1:
A strangely out of sorts Dunfermline had a frustrating 90 minutes at New Douglas Park.
It was a fine winter afternoon in Hamilton as foot of the table Clyde hosted the league leaders. After a changed look against Dundee on Tuesday night, manager James McPake reverted to the starting eleven he sent out against Partick Thistle in the Scottish Cup.
Following their defeat to Peterhead the previous Saturday Jim Duffy made three changes to his Clyde team. Peter Grant and Paul Kennedy were on the bench and Jordan Allan, score of two goals against the Pars at East End Park, had departed for Falkirk. Into the home side came Jon Craig, and there were debut starts for former Morton and Ayr United midfielder Cameron Salkeld and Fifer Martin Rennie.
Dunfermline kicked off with the Pars support in the stand behind them but when Clyde forced a third minute corner they unfortunately had an extremely good view of the opening goal. When the ball came over from the left Erik Sula struck the ball through a number of players and it was RENNIE who got the final touch. 1-0
Dunfermline immediately went up the park and Josh Edwards smashed a left footed shot beyond the far post. In 12th minute Craig Wighton was on the end of a strong cross in from Edwards but directed his header wide of the left goalpost. Then completed passes from Matty Todd, to Chris Mochrie to Edwards resulted in yet another ball into the Clyde box but the defence cleared.
Joe Chalmers made a break to pick out Mochrie and he switched the ball right for Kyle Macdonald but his cross cleared the crossbar. It was midway through the half when Todd fed Macdonald but this time his attempt to cross was blocked. The visitors were not finding it easy getting into any positions from which to test Clyde’s 37 year old keeper, Neil Parry.
In 26 minutes Edwards had another cross booted away and Macdonald and Comrie suffered the same way on the right. It was definitely a case of thought shall not cross. In 29 minutes Todd latched on to a long ball and he did dispatch a shot that was deflected over for a corner that Clyde duly defended.
Clyde managed to successfully read a Macdonald cut back destined for Todd and then Wighton was caught offside as frustrations grew. Then in 38 minutes an equaliser. A crossfield pass from Rhys Breen found EDWARDS and he turned and twisted a couple of times before sinking his shot from the left side of the box into the bottom right. 1-1
The Bully Wee reacted to losing the goal by taking play deep into the Fifers half and there was at least one shaky moment in the Dunfermline defence as Clyde finished the half strongly. It had not been the best of first halves for the Pars but they were able to go in all square with all to play for in the second half.
Half Time: Clyde 1 Dunfermline 1
There were two changes for Dunfermline before the second half got underway - Lewis McCann and Kane Ritchie-Hosler on for Chris Mochrie and Joe Chalmers. Ritchie-Hosler forced a corner within 30 seconds, followed by another both on the left but they were defended.
McCann swept a Macdonald cross into the keeper’s arms before in 54 minutes he had a better opportunity in front of goal but his on-target effort was blocked. Three minutes later Todd’s 25 yard effort was deflected for a corner on the right and although it was initially defended Kyle Benedictus was able to connect but the ball headed for the stand.
Next Edwards fought off challenges as he made a superb run up the left channel, to feed Ritchie-Hosler for a McCann shot that went for a corner. This time the ball came out to Todd and his shot from 25 yards out brought a good save out of Parry.
The heat was certainly turned up on the home defence. Corners kept coming but despite lots of headers in the Clyde box, the ball was kept out. Macdonald pinged the ball through the box and another Edwards delivery was turned behind. The 67th minute corner was fisted away by Parry.
Parry held a Macdonald cross, an Edwards shot was held by Parry before Nikolay Todorov replaced Craig Wighton and the next attempt came from the sub off an Edwards cross but he had no better luck as Parry saved that as well.
The pressure was maintained on the home goal. More corners were successfully defended and Ross Cunningham managed a 20 yard chip at the Dunfermline goal that went over the top.
Edwards fired in two 90th minute corners from the right and from the second McCann managed a header but just wide left. Todorov made Parry save a low driven shot in the third minute of time added on. In the end Clyde had successfully faced 16 Pars corners and 14 shots to take a precious point. Dunfermline’s lead at the top was reduced to five points as a consequence of Falkirk’s 2-1 win at FC Edinburgh.
CLYDE: Neil Parry: Ross Lyon, Erik Sula, Brian McLean (c), Jon Craig: Cameron Salkeld (Peter Grant 77), Kurtis Roberts (Paul Kennedy 84), Barry Cuddihy, Kyle Doherty (Euan Cameron 73): Ross Cunningham, Martin Rennie (Liam Scullion 77).SUBS NOT USED: Steven Thicot, Olly McDonald, Nathan Nyamsi, Josh Bradley-Hurst (GK).
SCORERS: Rennie (4)
YELLOW CARD: Doherty (71)
DUNFERMLINE: Deniz Mehmet: Aaron Comrie, Kyle Benedictus (c), Rhys Breen: Kyle Macdonald (Kevin O’Hara 84), Chris Hamilton, Joe Chalmers (Kane Ritchie-Hosler HT), Josh Edwards: Chris Mochrie (Lewis McCann HT), Matthew Todd: Craig Wighton (Nikolay Todorov 73).
SUBS NOT USED: Miller Fenton, Sam Young, Andrew Tod, Robbie Mahon, Max Little (GK)
SCORERS: Edwards (38)
YELLOW CARD: Todd (9), Edwards (56)
REFEREE: Barry Cook
WEATHER: Sunny intervals 4°C
ATTENDANCE 1066
NEXT MATCH: cinch League One (home) v Montrose, Saturday 4th February 2023, 3.00pm kick off at The KDM Group East End Park
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