Both sides started the game full of attacking intent, looking to entertain the crowd stood opposite, and beneath, one of Scottish football’s most iconic stands.

It would be Rose that looked the more dangerous, and in the 10th minute, it was a 10th league goal of the season for striking sensation Keiran McGachie. Lee Currie sent through a signature line-breaking pass, kissing the ball with the outstep of his foot, into the path of Callum Connolly. Meeting it required a stretch from the Rose midfielder, who was still able to dig out a cross of enough quality that McGachie could almost smash through the roof of the net for the away lead.

The visitors continued to probe. A game so engrossing the shouts of wild celebration from another fixture just a few pitches over became all but a whisper in the winter wind.

It wouldn’t take long for those Rose fans engrossed to become excited, and then subsequently, elated. A loose ball was picked up by McGachie 30-yards out, a magnet to action in every way possible. Those perched on the embankment began to smell a second. Sliding in Ross Gray, left with a few options when faced with an onrushing ‘keeper, proved to be the answer. After a finish colder than the January conditions at Netherdale, slotted immaculately through the legs of Harris Spratt, Gray wheeled away in celebration as the Rose’s quintessential little and large partnership beared fruit again.

If we’ve learned anything this season though, it’s that Bonnyrigg don’t need to rely soley on their frontmen for goals. Stereotype-defying defender Kerr Young fancied pushing forward, finding himself at the heart of two good chances. His cross first missed McGachie before being met on the half volley by a bright-eyed Currie, but the strike sailed high over the bar. Moments later, and with ball retrieved, Currie sent a looping ball into the box from the far corner, so good that Young’s exasperation was evident after failing to steer it goalward.

The first crack in the Rose armour appeared when Young’s effort from distance was blocked, allowing Rovers to burst forward with a numerical advantage. The ball was fed through to Daryl Healy in acres of space to put him one-on-one with Mikey Andrews. The Rose armour went from cracked to shining, worn by Bonnyrigg’s knight Alan Horne, as he seemingly rode in from nowhere to block the stinging strike of the Gala forward.

That moment served as a warning, a glimpse into what was to come from the hosts in a much-improved second period. McGachie nodded over early in the half, but from then on, interim manager Martin Scott got his side to take control of the ball.

Territorial dominance was the approach, Healy the man most often tasked with executing the final touch. He so nearly did as he met a wicked delivery from the left with his head at the back-post, then pondering why no one else in a funky red and black blended strip was there to help his effort homeward.

Pressure grew, and just as Horne was required to be the last gasp defensive hero in the first half, so too was Young in the second. A backline-splitting pass bounced in the direction of dangerman Zander Murray, denied only by the most exquisitely timed tackle from the Rose number 4, poking the ball away for a corner with a satisfying slide.

The resulting set piece would prove similarly dramatic, as a bulleted Rovers header evoked a stunning save from Andrews. Gala players insisted the ball was over the line, but the officials adjudged that the Rose stopper had done enough to push the ball to safety in spectacular fashion.

The hosts continued to carve out chances, frantically searching for a lifeline in a game far from over. Healy had a cheeky flick on goal, then Calum Hall drifted inside to force another great Andrews save, bettered moments later as he sprawled to the bottom corner to keep Marc Berry out. Rose remained resolute.

The aforementioned magnetism of McGachie created controversy in the dying stages, and in turn, gave Gala hope. In the midst of a mid-afternoon melee, only the referee will know why, after awarding him a foul, the Rose striker was shown a second yellow card. As I said, he’s a magnet to action in every way possible. This time, perhaps unjustly.

Despite being down to 10, despite having ridden a wave of opposition chances, despite having memories of a lead surrendered so fresh in their minds, it would be Rose to land the final blow of an enthralling encounter.

Bradley Barrett could have played it safe with the ball at his feet high on the far corner. Bravery reigned however, instead electing to drive a cross low into the box, one that was side-footed home by a pouncing Connolly to simultaneously produce sighs of relief and scenes of jubilation from those of a red and white (or today, yellow) persuasion.

The victory sees Rose lead the Lowland League by 11 points, with games in hand to be considered for some of the chasing pack. A short trip to Tranent awaits Robbie Horn’s side next week, as we head to Foresters Park in the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup.

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