Off the back of five consecutive league wins, some may have felt last weekend’s break came at the wrong time for Bonnyrigg Rose, and when Edinburgh Uni started brightly through attackers Dave Maskrey and Patrick Baird, it looked like those fears may ring true.

They were quickly put to bed however as the scoring was opened through Keiran McGachie. A Lee Currie corner found Dean Hoskins, whose header looked goalbound, before George Hunter attempted to flick the ball in but did so onto the crossbar. Thankfully for the Rose, the big man was the first to react, as McGachie saw his header nestle in the back of the net for his fifth goal of the season.

McGachie and Hunter would link up again moments later, this time far more intentionally. The former fizzed a ball into his strike partner’s feet, with Geo beautifully clipping the ball round the corner first time for the onrushing McGachie. The striker couldn’t double his tally however, a smart stop at his near post from Uni ‘keeper Nick Buxton denying both McGachie and Rose’s second of the game.

The crossbar had twice denied Hunter so far, once in the build up to the opening goal and again before he was flagged offside. This time, Hoskins’ header from a Currie corner soared straight onto the crossbar itself, without the need for an intervention from Hunter.

Rose conceded chances of their own, with Maskrey and Aidan Kemp asking questions of the backline in the opening half an hour. However, their chances of drawing level became tougher as they watched one of their own players turn the ball into the wrong goal.

In perhaps the hosts’ best move of the game, beautiful combination play involving Ross Gray, Kerr Young and McGachie eventually lead to a scary prospect for any defender; Dean Brett in space high on the right.

The wingback showed just show dangerous he can be, sending a wicked ball into the back post. With Hoskins breathing down his neck, a moment of indecision from Bonisteel cost Uni, as the young defender could do nothing but divert the ball past his own goalkeeper.

It looked as though Hoskins had finally grabbed that elusive first goal since his return to NDP, once again getting his head on the end of a Cuzza set piece and sending the ball beyond Buxton, but it was the linesman’s flag that denied the Granton Goose this time.

Alarm bells rang for Bonnyrigg as the second half got underway, with the students getting their biggest sight of goal of the game in the 46th minute. Baird, who had looked Uni’s biggest threat in the first half, was at the heart a move that eventually lead to Louis Maurice bearing down on goal, but a quick reaction save from Mark Weir kept the Rose’s clean sheet in tact.

Just a few minutes later, finally, a Currie corner led to a Hoskins goal. The accuracy of Cuzza’s lofted delivery couldn’t have been any better, and all that was left to do was for the Granton Goose to knock the ball into the back of the net for a well deserved first goal in his second spell at the Rosey Posey.

Currie nearly notched his second assist of the game not long after, as his chipped through ball left Hunter in behind the Uni defence. The striker took a brilliant first touch as he set himself for a strike at goal, but Buxton reacted commendably, flying off his line and making himself big to keep out last season’s top scorer for the Rose.

Before the previous chance could be digested, Bonnyrigg looked like scoring again. Ross Gray squirmed his way past the opposition defence, putting himself in the right-hand side of the box and one on one with Buxton. The midfielder couldn’t get the angles of his shot right however, slicing the ball into the side netting.

There were also some positive substitute appearances for the Rose. Firstly, Bradley Barrett gave a very good account of himself in his 30-minute stint, and may well have opened his account for his new club if it hadn’t been for a well timed block from Calum McDonald. It was a welcome sight to see Lewis Turner back on the field again, making his first appearance since our home win over Gretna 2008 in mid-October following an injury.

As well as the 3-0 win, these cameos will no doubt be welcomed by Robbie Horn. Getting the most out of the entire squad will be at the forefront of the coaching staff’s mind as the Rose enter a busy festive period, starting with Saturday’s visit of BSC Glasgow at New Dundas Park.

Article Copyright © 2020. Permission to use quotations from this or any article on the website is only granted subject to appropriate source credit and for online use source credit and hyperlink to www.bonnyriggrosefc.co.uk