Cowden miss chance to take lead to Brechin

Published 13 May 2010 07:00 0 Comments

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Scott McBride still posed City problems despite their defensive strategy.

Cowdenbeath 0, Brechin City 0.

COWDEN should have taken an advantage to Glebe Park on Sunday as they dominated the First Division play-off final first leg at Central Park on Wednesday night.

Admittedly Brechin City were short of regulars through injury and could only name three outfield substitutes but Cowdenbeath had enough decent openings to take a lead to Angus at the weekend.

Give City their due though, they came with a plan to blunt a Blue Brazil strike force which had thumped seven goals passed them in the previous two games and for the most part it worked.

But still the Fifers should have converted at least one of the openings that they created over a 90 minutes which was devoid of flowing football.

Cowdenbeath, like in most games this season, were very solid at the back with 'keeper David Hay having only sporadic raids to deal with and in midfield the Blues were dominant.

However, City flooded this area with only Rory McAllister left up front and it meant that dangerous wide players Brian Fairbairn and Scott McBride had little space to work with.

Strikers Paul McQuade and Gareth Wardlaw still had chances though but on the night they could not find the target.

Cowden's best crowd of the season saw City hemmed in at the start of the game and inside 60 seconds Wardlaw fired a shot over from just inside the box.

The home team pressed forward and Fairbairn and McBride supplied good crosses but there were no takers and then McQuade deftly laid the ball back to Kenny Adamson on the edge of the Brechin box but he too fired over.

It took City 24 minutes to get in a worthwhile shot which Charlie King fired widly wide and then former Blue Brazilian Gary Fusco saw a low drive catch Darren McGregor before drifting over for a corner.

On the interval whistle McQuade sent in a fierce right foot shot which Craig Nelson saved at full stretch.

City opened the second period a bit more positively and Steve Canning was just off target with an 18 yarder and in 50 minutes their top scorer, McAllister, was about to pull the trigger 12 yards out when Mark Baxter put in a timely tackle.

McAllister then forced the ball along the Cowden goal-line only to find Joe Mbu lying handy to clear.

Just before the hour mark McQuade set up Wardlaw 10 yards out but the top scorer's shot was just wide and then McBride's low cross was almost turned into his own net by Mark Docherty.

In 70 minutes veteran King slice open the Cowden back line with a lovely pass but McAllister, clean through, only succeeded in rolling the ball to Hay with a poor first touch.

In the closing 15 minutes it was all Cowden. By this stage the injured Nelson had been replaced by David Scott who made a fine save from McGregor's header and then Wardlaw blazed over after a knockdown by Cowden sub John Dempster.

Cowden kept pressing but City worked their socks off to keep the home team out and succeeded.

Cowdenbeath: Hay; Armstrong, Adamson; McGregor, Baxter, Mbu; Fairbairn (Dempster (73), Winter, Wardlaw, McQuade (Ramsay 88), McBride. Subs not used, Stein, Robertson and Wilson.

Brechin city: Nelson (Scott 68); Walker, Docherty; Smith, McLean, Vallers; Canning, Fusco, McAllister, King, Archdeacon (Byres 87). Subs not used, Cowan and Masson.

Referee-Stephen Finnie. Attendance-1119.

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