MATCH PREVIEW BY SEÁN MCGILL

The madness of the last couple of years means that, somehow, there remains teams yet to visit New Dundas Park since Bonnyrigg Rose’s promotion to the Lowland League in 2019. That list will shrink on Saturday as Gala Fairydean Rovers finally head for Midlothian as the two sides clash for the first time this season.

The Rose will be looking to stretch their winning run in all competitions to 12, following on from their 2-0 win over Vale of Leithen on Tuesday evening. A far from stellar performance from the rotated hosts, though it was clear to see the current bottom side in the league have improved since Rose’s record breaking 13-0 win at Victoria Park last month.

Nathan Evans grabbed his ninth goal of the season, putting him joint-top of the Rose scoring charts alongside Kieran Hall and Keiran McGachie, who’s now free to add to his 101 goals for the club after serving his suspension for a controversial sending off in the 1-0 win over Broomhill.

Meanwhile, Lee Currie returned to his usual reliability from the penalty spot, having missed his last two spot kicks, breaking the mini-duct with a chipped effort that squirmed past the impressive Kyle Wilson.

The weekend’s visitors also picked up a win midweek, as Gala overcame Gretna 2008 3-1 at the iconic Netherdale. It has been a solid season so far for Neil Hastings’ side, who find themselves 8th in the table at the halfway stage.

The last time the sides met was the opening day of the 2020/21 season (otherwise known as the first game for the new media team!) Two Currie spot kicks towards the end of the first half got Rose rolling, before a Scott Gray tap in and an audacious Jamie Docherty lob from a frankly ridiculous angle got Robbie Horn’s men off to a winning start.

Kick-off is 3pm at New Dundas Park on Saturday afternoon, with tickets priced at £7 for adults, £4 for concessions, while U12s go free with a paying adult.

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