Published: Thursday, 8th May, 2008 10:00
Step down for Cowden after extra-time stunner
By Jim Stark
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McQuade's opener wasn't enough
Cowdenbeath 1-2 Arbroath (Cowdenbeath 2-3 Arbroath on aggregate)
Cowdenbeath took the killer punch in extra-time which wrecked their chances of staying in the Barrs Irn Bru Second Division.
Cowden had found the Arbroath side hard to master at Central Park on Saturday mainly due to the height advantage the Gayfielders had.
Only Pat Scullion, Chris Shanks, Dougie Hill and Denis McLaughlin were really able to compete with the six foot plus opposition.
But for a spell in the second period it looked as if Cowden were going to win the game but two headed goals sent them down to the third division.
Cowden’s player of the year, David Hay, was again a stand-out for the Fifers in this game making several excellent stops.
He had good cover from Chris Shanks, Kenny Adamson and Dougie Hill but in midfield the Blues found themselves struggling.
In extra-time, especially, the Lichties controlled a lot of the play and once they got their noses in front there was nothing Cowden could do to redress the balance.
The game got off to a very quite start despite the pot of gold at stake and the first real goal threat came in 16 minutes when a long Marek Tomana pass posed problems for Arbroath and when Robbie Raeside was short with his pass-back ‘keeper Darren Hill came off his line and booted the ball off McLaughlin but it only cleared the bar by a few feet.
Arbroath’s first real look at goal came in 26 minutes when Bryan Scott’s header from a Paul Lunan cross was tipped over by Hay.
In the closing minutes of the half Cowden went all out for a goal and in 37 minutes Mark Ramsay’s cross from the right saw Kevin McMullan head over his own bar and then four minutes later Tomana went through and his 25 yarder was tipped over by Hill.
Then on the interval whistle Ramsay again caused problems and his cross was headed strongly into Hill’s hands by Craig Tully.
The second-half saw Arbroath start the better side with Barry Sellars posing real problems for the Fifers.
On the hour his header scraped the Cowden bar and six minutes later his 18 yarder was saved by Hay at full-stretch.
But in 71 minutes Cowdenbeath went in front. Ramsay posed the danger and his low cross was half-stopped by Tully but McQUADE was alert to the situation and scored from close in.
Could Cowden hold out. Alas no for in 83 minutes Lunan’s cross was headed home by Roddy BLACK for the leveller which took the tie to extra-time.
There Arbroath had the better of possession and Hay made good saves from Lunan and Alan Brazil but in 115 minutes the ‘keeper had to admit defeat.
McMullan’s cross was missed by the Cowden rearguard and RAESIDE powered his header over Hay.
Cowden were stunned and could do very little about it as the Gayfielders went through to meet Stranraer in the final.
Cowdenbeath: Hay; Shields, Adamson; Shanks, Hill, O’Neil (McQuade 62); Ramsay, Scullion, McLaughlin, Tomana (Robertson 94), Gates (Linton 73). Subs not used, McBride and Allison.
Arbroath: Hill; McMullan, Black; Raeside, Bishop, Tully (Rennie 98); Lunan, Campbell (McBride 78), Brazil, Sellars, Scott (Watson 50). Subs not used Reilly and Morrison.
Referee-Willie Collum. Att: 778.
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Further Details
Cowden add trio to squad