| Stirling Albion |
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| Queen's Park |
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| Queen's may not get a better opportunity to beat Stirling Albion for another 3 years, the length of time since they last won at Forthbank. Despite being reduced to only 9 men, the home side were able to hold out relatively comfortably. We were over-cautious, but in all fairness, lacked much of a presence up front without the injured Derek Carcary, replaced just before the break. With him on the pitch and flying, I don't think there's a great deal of doubt the game would have been won; but without the option of flighting long balls over the top for Carcary in the latter stages, Queen's attempted to build from the back. Sadly, this was done far too slowly, with Paul Harvey in particular looking afraid to move his feet at times. Kenny Brannigan should have a greater say in encouraging the team to push forward, but seemingly failed to do so, and was also too slow to recognise that Steven Canning in attack is an option that's already been exhausted to no great effect. Too late, young David Weatherston was brought on; he looked sharp, but had hardly any time to make an impression. A point at a ground we always lose at against a strong, if ordinary, team did not seem nearly enough at the time; it feels better now, but its infuriating that Queen's couldn't grab such a unique opportunity to humble the league leaders and get one of the results of their season. Handicapped from the off by injuries to Graham and Ferry ( who could be out for a few weeks ) and Whelan's suspension, Queen's's midfield was weakened by Clark's switch into defence. Martin Bonnar replaced him for his full debut, leaving the midfield physically much more fragile, but Bonnar's enthusiasm made up for his lack of stature. In fact Queen's started well, and in the 14th minute should have gone in front, Carcary being put clean through, but his attempted right foot shot spun off Hogarth's outstretched right leg for a corner. Stirling did have more efforts on goal in the first half but few of them troubled Scrimgour. An early drive from Lyle was easily held, while Clark was able, in the 13th minute, to prevent the elusive O'Brien from getting in a clear shot with a superb tackle. A snapshot from Hay went over the bar, and Devine's rising effort also flew over, but on the whole Queen's were making a pretty good job of barricading Stirling, with Clark and Reilly excellent in their unusual roles. Derek Carcary again came close to putting Queen's in front on the half-hour mark after Rowe's hash of a header out of defence, but he went far too close to the byeline when rounding Hogarth, and Carroll was unable to make anything of the cutback, miskicking wildly. Five minutes later, a searing volley from the teenager out of virtually nothing flew a hair's breadth past the post. With this sort of form, even another season at Queen's seems unlikely for him. But a knee injury put paid to his match just before half-time, Paul Harvey came on, and the Queen's attack was severely weakened as a result. McKinnon wasn't too far away in stoppage time, but half-time arrived with the fans feeling optimistic that a rare point at this least welcoming of grounds could be earned. We were almost disabused of that notion within the opening minute of the half when McLean found himself in the clear, but clearly in the belief that he was offside, the striker struck his shot off the right-hand post of Scrimgour. A relieved travelling crowd made their feelings only too plain to the linesman standing only a few metres from them. Queen's continued to cope easily enough with the Stirling midfield and forwards until the first potential turning-point of the game arrived after 59 minutes. A crude tackle on Frankie Carroll from behind close to the Queen's supporters resulted in a second yellow card for Paul Hay, and this should have given Queen's the impetus to come out of their shells and throw more men forward. But little progress had been made, save for a Kettlewell shot conjured up by some lovely skills from the young midfielder, until, almost surreally, a second Stirling player was ordered off some 11 minutes later. McLean's challenge on Scrimgour as the latter moved to collect a loose ball at the edge of his penalty area was suspect; that in itself would never have been enough to merit a red card, but on the other hand, did the contact that followed - variously described as a hair-tug, a push in Scrimgour's face, or both - rank as sufficient for another sending-off? On the say-so of the nearside linesman, referee McDonald was convinced that it was, and an ordinary mid-to-late season game, which on paper should have been a procession for Stirling, was threatening to turn into a debacle for the league leaders. But if you believed it would, you were reckoning without Kenny Brannigan's strange grasp of football tactics: often of the most basic kind. With Queen's crying out for a determined fight for the winner, the coach could only manage to push the lethargic substitute Paul Harvey up front, and his habits of slowing the game down and passing patiently would prove of little use at this juncture. He also surrendered possession far too cheaply. And with the middle of the park looking frail and indecisive, Stirling kept themselves comfortably in the match despite their numerical disadvantage, and at times looked the likelier side. An 80th minute free-kick from Lyle was nervously scrambled clear by Scrimgour; the same player had previously lashed a shot from close range miles over as the home side resolved to fight for a valuable point, urged on by a home support incensed at what they perceived as unjust refereeing. Earlier, Steven Canning had looked certain to win the match for Queen's when absolutely in the clear, but his blushes at a pathetic miskick only a few yards out were spared by a linesman's flag. Canning, like several of his team-mates, was struggling to cope with the pressure of now being expected to win the game, and Queen's looked totally unsure of how to go about it. They needed guidance from the touchline, but all that was offered was the substitution of Allan Dunning by young David Weatherston, making his debut for the first team. This came after 87 minutes almost too late - almost, because the youngster was to come agonisingly close to snatching a remarkable winner in the final minute. At last, Paul Harvey's delivery into the box was accurate, and Weatherston hooked a volley from six yards out towards goal. Hogarth did magnificently to block, and Queen's only real chance had gone. What pressure as there was continued into stoppage time, but with Stirling now content to defend, nothing came of any of it. The result, or more significantly the manner of it, must go down as another blow for Kenny Brannigan as he labours to persuade those not convinced of his managerial abilities that he can indeed hack it. Why more insight could not be shown in order to swing the match in Queen's favour was baffling. He isn't likely to need a masterplan to see off East Stirling next Saturday, even without Derek Carcary, nor will all-out attack be needed to beat them. But unless a more adventurous style can be adopted in the future, especially when the circumstances are crying out for it, then the potential of this team - even without Moffat, Fallon and McAuley who have all mysteriously disappeared - will never be fulfilled. Stirling Albion: Myles Hogarth, Paul Nugent, Stewart Devine ( Derek Anderson 32 ), Chris Scotland, George Rowe, Andy Smith ( Gary Kelly 63 ), Paul Hay, Colin McKinnon, Scott McLean, Derek Lyle ( Ryan Davidson 87 ), David O'Brien. Substitutes not used: Craig Ferguson, Scott Morrison. Booked: Hay. Sent-off: Hay ( 59 - second bookable offence ), McLean ( 70 - violent conduct ). Queen's Park: Derek Scrimgour, Martin Bonnar, David McCallum, Allan Dunning ( David Weatherson 87 ), David Stewart, Ross Clark, Stuart Kettlewell, Steven Reilly, Frankie Carroll, Steven Canning, Derek Carcary ( Paul Harvey 44 ). Substitutes not used: Damiano Agostini, Tony Quinn. Booked: McCallum. Referee: S. McDonald. Attendance: 787. |