Rose on Cloud Nine

Match report by Amy Canavan

When I was last on match report duties, there were thirteen goals to dissect… another mammoth task awaits here, do bear with.

As in my last ramblings, an early goal was scored. Albeit this time, it wasn’t from a man in red and white.

Even in the early stages of the first Midlothian derby with fans in two years, Arniston Rangers’ solo goal came against the run of play.

The home side were simply gearing up for another attack, building from the back but a slack pass allowed Gary Shearer to pounce on the ball. Mark Weir was caught off his line and could only be a spectator when Shearer’s 30-yard lofted strike sailed over his head.

Given a lease of life after the goal, the home support could be heard murmuring as the visitors grew into the game.

Murmurs turned into sighs of relief, when 20 minutes of trailing came to an end. Lee Currie’s feathered corner was met by the rising Neil Martyniuk, who headed home his first goal of the season and the side’s maiden of the afternoon.

Clear cut chances in the remainder of the half were few and far between. The best opportunity fell to the head of George Hunter. On the end of Bradley Barrett’s cute cross, the striker failed to keep his knock, down.

As players rushed for the dressing rooms, fans dashed for a hot tea and pie – well needed on a freezing Saturday afternoon.

Who knows what was on the menu in Robbie Horn’s team talk, but the serving was eloquently delivered in the second half.

The smell of coffee was still poignant around New Dundas Park when the Rose took the lead.

Currie loomed over a free kick on the far-left corner of the box, as McQueen marshalled his wall. Cheekily, Currie wrapped the ball around the wall and evaded their presence, leaving the visiting goalkeeper, motionless.

The only attempt of note in the second 45 from the visitors came in search of an equaliser of their own. McLean’s whipped cross was encountered by Johnson’s head. Confident his looped header had outdone Weir, the Rose shot stopper pulled off a sensational save to tip the ball over the bar.

On the quest for a more comfortable cushion, Barrett tanked down the left flank before cutting into the box, where he was hauled down blatantly by Grieve. Lee Currie – who missed his last penalty against Vale of Leithen – made it two from two as McQueen parried away the weak shot down to his right. However, Arniston failed to dilute the danger. Ross Gray slipped in Nathan Evans before the latter rifled his unstoppable strike.
Three vital contributors in the previous goal linked up again. Currie’s threaded pass was latched onto by Barrett, who zinged the ball across the face of goal, asking Evans to merely toe-poke it over the line – the number 18 won’t score an easier goal than that.

Arguably, the most audacious finish came in the form of goal number five for Bonnyrigg Rose. Currie’s corner gained a little help from Martyniuk’s flick and landed in the path of Barrett who nonchalantly back-heeled the ball into the back of the net. Chef’s kiss.

Evans didn’t get the chance to grab his second Rose hattrick as he departed the park alongside Hunter for Keiran McGachie and Kieran Hall.

The latter powered his way past Arniston defenders down the right before he tee’d up the onrushing Barrett. The weight of the pass allowed the left-wing-back to take his strike in his stride and utilise his momentum to ensure the net was smashed. Instant impact from Hall.

Horn turned to his bench again shortly after the sixth goal in the form of Callum Connolly. Currie left the park to a resounding round of applause. Recognition for another stellar performance – despite that penalty miss.

A flurry of efforts failed to find their way through McQueen. McGachie put it on a plate for Hall – he had near enough an open goal to nod the ball into – but his attempt skied wayward towards the shed. Scott Gray skirted by the shed before dancing his way through into the box, but his lethal strike shattered the side netting.

It didn’t take long for the Rose to be in seventh heaven, mind you. Connolly found a yard of space on the edge of the box, his goal-bound shot took a deflection on it’s way to the top corner, but the landing was never in doubt.

Scorer turned provider. Connolly’s pin-point cross connected with Hall’s head. His effort looked to have been going agonisingly wide, but a helpless Arniston defender was caught wrong-footed and sliced the ball into his own net.

The tenth goal of the afternoon was the most confusing of the pack. McGachie drove down the right flank before he fed through Scott Gray. The cross, aimed to Hall, was met by myriads of boots, but from the gantry, it seemed fairly clear that the ball had trotted over the line. The referee was hesitant to confirm the goal, but his linesman less so.

An overpoweringly dominant second-half concluded and Bonnyrigg Rose safely booked their place in the third round of the South Challenge Cup.

23 goals I’ve deconstructed in my last two games. Twenty-three in two.

Baggsy the next quiet afternoon.

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