ALL CHANGE AGAIN AT THE TOP

RYAN McMANUS PROVIDED GLENCAIRN’S SPARK

The WoSFL First Division season is yet in its infancy but one wonders whether the shape of things to come is already increasingly clear after another dazzling and exhilarating performance from Rutherglen Glencairn.

Fresh from knocking Shotts Bon Accord off pole position with a 3-0 Hannah Park triumph in midweek, Joe Pryce’s young side were at it again on Saturday, this time in dishing out a 5-1 thumping of the new frontrunners Petershill which has now enabled an unbeaten Glens to assume the top perch.

Admittedly, the gap between them and a healthy chasing pack headed up by Shotts ( a mere point further back) is not all that great but the question raised on the evidence of their resounding victory over the Peasy is not so much when but if they can be caught .

For sure, their suitably delighted supporters trooping away from the Hamish B.Allan Stadium cannot envisage a lapse happening any time soon and few if any can blame them particularly if hitman Ryan McManus continues to play at the very top of his game as he did at the weekend.

The 26 year old helped himself to a hat trick and for good measure set up his side’s other two goals with an overall scintillating display that aided and abetted by strike partner Jay McKay gave the runaround to vastly experienced Springburn defenders Ross McCabe and Ryan Thomson.

Forward line pairings like theirs are seemingly a thing of a bygone age given the preference nowadays for teams to set up with 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-2-1 formations which largely depend upon the spearhead holding up and protecting the ball until the midfield cavalry arrives.

Yet while McManus has developed into a well-rounded type capable of `going it alone` so to speak, natural goalscorers of his ilk thrive (as he did against Petershill) on having a partner to share both the workload and the inevitable hits coming in from opponents.

Speaking after the final whistle the marksman, with 7 goals to his name this season, modestly revealed,

“The first half today looked like being one of those days when the openings were going to be hard to come by however Jay and I stayed true to our disciplines and kept plugging away until the goals came.

“This time I was the one getting on the end of things but that won’t always be the case so it’s important to set an example by putting in a shift for the team regardless.

“Ours is a young team full of running all over the pitch but the downside is a lack of experience so it falls upon me as one of the older heads now to keep feet on the ground by saying that all we’ve done up to now is make a good start…nothing more.”

A near opening half hour of defensive dominance saw precious little created in the way of goalscoring opportunities with the first attempt on target by either side arriving with a tame McManus header into the arms of Peasy goalkeeper Kevin McAllister 28 minutes in.

One might have described his effort as a `sighter` if it had been known that minutes later the striker’s cameo display would be underway after he astutely fed the ball out wide from just over the halfway line and never stopped running until arriving at the front post in tandem with a low driven cross from forward line buddy McKay to delicately touch the ball home and give Glencairn a 1-0 lead.

The age old idiom that begins “You wait ages for a bus then two” etc.etc.etc came to mind as the up to then toothless Springburn visitors equalized when their very next attacking sortie resulted in a corner kick delivered with pace by Darren Miller and headed home at the front post by Thomas Sinclair ,diving low and bravely among flailing boots.

The opening 45 minutes had petered out to a level scoreline conclusion albeit a McManus diving header attempt came ever so close to getting on the end of a McKay goalwards volley and it was the Ru’Glonian hitman who was to the fore again on the resumption when he headed an Anthony McGuire cross high over McAllister’s crossbar.

Shortly afterwards , Peasy dead ball expert Miller whistling a 30 yard free kick just inches over set the scene for a devastating Glencairn response over the closing half hour which resulted in a previously inconceivable three goals burst that could easily have been doubled but for McAllister’s heroics between the posts.

PEASY BOSS STEVIE McNEIL “TOO MANY MISTAKES COST US”

Visibly hurting Petershill gaffer Stevie McNeil admitted , “ Glencairn were far hungrier and demonstrated a greater energy than us all over the pitch but don’t anyone think the scoreline says it all because we could have conceded more goals but for Kevin McAllister.

“We came here with a definite game plan but you’d have thought the guys weren’t listening when we were telling them how we wanted to play.

“ You simply cannot make the amount of basic mistakes we did today and expect to win games at the top level.”

McManus(who else ?) got the closing stages excitement underway in 62 minutes when a forward ball from full back McGuire landed at his feet and he unhesitatingly spun to spectacularly fire a 25 yard shot , a scorer from the moment it left his foot ,beyond McAllister ‘s reach.

2-1 than became 3-1 less than ten minutes later when another searching McGuire cross found McManus, criminally all alone just six yards out and he needed no invitation to bury a header past the helpless Peasy No 1 who must have felt the team mates in front of him had either capitulated or given up the ghost altogether even if Sinclair did come close to a second goal in 76 minutes when he glanced another Miller corner kick just wide of target.

Normal service was resumed as McAllister blocked a close range netbound header from impressive Glens defender Lewis Blane that was followed by his feet blocking away a certain Austin Sime scoring attempt .

It was looking a case of how many as McAllister acrobatically touched away a McKay curler but even he had to admit defeat in 81 minutes after a break upfield at pace by four Glencairn players led to them bearing down on just the one Peasy outfield defender Lorenzo Giovanazzi and the ball was easily passed around him allowing McManus to tee it up for Blane to net from point blank range.

Glens followers basked in this 4-1 goal celebration mode but the players were far from satisfied out on the pitch and their continuing to launch further attacking sorties as the clock ticked down was rewarded by a coup de grace, inflicted by substitute Dylan Hendry who lotted a low shot past McAllister with great aplomb after that man McManus had played him through on goal.

His side’s 5-1 winning scoreline pleased team boss Joe Pryce but he was nonetheless far from ecstatic in giving his post- match summations.

He said , “Yes it was a good day but I still believe there is a lot better to come from these guys.

“For instance , we didn’t perform all that well first half and during the interval we stressed the need for the players to stick at it and keep working in order for the breaks to come their way and that’s exactly how things panned out

“McManus whose work rate is second to none deserves all the credit going for his goals however he and the other guys need to go away now and focus on what we were good at today and what aspects of our game can be improved upon .

“Being top of the table is a nice position but it’s important we keep a lid on things going forward.”

JOE PRYCE IS NOT GETTING CARRIED AWAY

Petershill’s crushing defeat saw them drop back to third in the standings, overtaken by Shotts Bon Accord on the back of their solitary point earned from a hard fought 1-1 draw away to Kilwinning Rangers for whom Gavin Millar’s first half score looked to have secured the spoils until Bon Accord substitute Andrew Muir popped up with a late equalizer.

And up into the relatively giddy heights of fourth spot in the table are ambitious Johnstone Burgh after Ally Smart bagged the only goal of the game in a 1-0 Keanie Park victory over Blantyre Vics.

The only other First Division encounter to go ahead saw Thorniewood United move up to ninth best place thanks to running out 5-2 Robertson Park winners over Whitletts Vics .

Counters from Cammy Smith(2), Declan Walsh, Jack Smith and Cody McLeod had The Wood in easy street long before late in the day Whitletts Vics counters from Robbie McCracken and Jason Walker did little more than put a better complexion on the scoreline for the Ayrshiremen.

WEEKEND RESULTS: P.D.M HUWS GRAY Premier Division. Largs Thistle 2 Arthurlie 0, Hurlford Utd 0 Benburb 1, Glenafton 2 Pollok 5, Darvel 4 Rob Roy 0, Auchinleck Talbot 0 Clydebank 1. P.D.M HUWS GRAYFirst Division. Drumchapel Utd 2 Cambuslang Rangers 0, Johnstone Burgh 1 Blantyre Vics 0, Kilwinning Rangers 1 Shotts Bon Accord 1, Rutherglen Glencairn 5 Petershill 1, Thorniewood Utd 5 Whitletts Vics 2. PDM HUWS GRAY Second Division. Forth Wanderers 3 Ardrossan Winton Rovers 2, Maryhill 4 Kilsyth Rangers 1, Vale of Clyde 3 Wishaw 0, St Anthonys 5Caledonian Locomotives 1. PDM HUWS GRAYThird Division. Bellshill Athletic 5 Lemahagow 5, Kilsyth Athletic 1 Irvine Vics 1, Kello Rovers 1 Threave Rovers 4. PDM HUWS GRAYFourth Division. Giffnock S.C. 10 Royal Albert 0, Rossvale 2 Easterhouse 1, St Peters 1 Thorn Athletic 1, Lugar Boswell 1 Knightswood 2, East Kilbride Thistle 6 Carluke Rovers 1.South Challenge Cup.1^st Round. Stirling University 1 Gartcairn 1 (Stirling win 3-0 pens) Cumbernauld Utd 1 Glasgow University 0, Glasgow Perthshire 1 BSC Glasgow 3, Kilbirnie Ladeside 2 Greenock 1, Ardeer Thistle 2 Beith 3, Bonnyton Thistle 3 Newmains Utd 0, St Cadocs 1 Port Glasgow 0 ,Yoker Athletic 6 Renfrew 3, Glasgow Utd 1 St Rochs 3,Lanrk Utd 5 Muirkirk 2, Campbelltown Pupils 2 Vale of Leven 4, Dunipace 1 Finnart 0, Maybole 3 Lochar Thistle 2, Craigmark 6 Dalbeattie Star 2, Eglinton 0 Irvine Meadow 2, Girvan 1 Larkhall Thistle 0.

Regards

Jim O’Donnell