Scottish Cup Second Preliminary Round
Saturday 31st August 2024
Match report from Ross McGowan
With football fans the length and breadth of the country dreaming of Hampden, Lochee United’s own Scottish Cup adventure began at a sun-soaked Thomson Park this afternoon with a healthy crowd in attendance excited by the prospects of glamour and glory that this competition offers.
Today’s opponents Hawick Royal Albert compete in Division 3 of the East Of Scotland Football League and with both Ben Owandu and Harry Fowler in hot goal-scoring form of late the Borders side were sure to provide a stern test.
Lochee went into today’s game nursing an unhelpful injury list but were nonetheless high on confidence after a perfect start of five wins from their opening five competitive fixtures.
But with all the dreams of Hampden, the visitors’ defence were slow to awaken and Lochee very nearly capitalised on an extraordinary start to the game. Hawick kicked off straight to the centre-back position and Kerr Hay raced upfield to steal the ball bearing down on goal but the defender did just enough to recover and put Hay off from behind with the keeper gathering the scraps.
With Hawick looking to play out from the back Lochee began to press high up the park and when a good move off the left flank found Ryan Paterson in the box his powerful shot was thwarted by a strong one-handed save.
The more the visitors stuck to their pure footballing philosophy the higher Lochee pressed with our front line like a swarm of bees harrying the Hawick defence and the visitors were soon caught in possession again with Bobby Linn bursting into the box and the keeper rushing off his line to smother at Linn’s feet.
Callum Lamb then went close, chesting down and firing narrowly wide after good work by Ewan Murray and Ryan Paterson down the left.
The opening 20 minutes had seen all the play in Hawick’s half with a goal the only thing missing from Lochee’s dominant start.
However, Hawick soon served up a reminder that they were still a threat when a 30 yard bolt out of the blue was watchfully tipped over the bar by Jamie McCabe in the Lochee goal.
Then from the resultant corner there were gasps from the crowd gathered in the enclosure as a header cannoned back off the bar and McCabe made a magnificent reaction save to keep out the rebound.
Having survived a scare Lochee dusted themselves down and looked to move the game higher up the park again and on the half hour they momentarily thought they’d taken the lead when a swift counter-attack saw Danny Cavanagh burst through the middle and lift the ball over the keeper but when Ryan Paterson followed in to supply the finishing touch the linesman’s flag was raised for offside.
But the Bluebells would not be denied for much longer and in the 36th minute they seized control of the cup tie. Callum Lamb found space down the right and drove inside holding off defenders before slipping a delicate ball through for Kerr Hay who took an excellent first touch then buried the ball low into the bottom corner to put Lochee 1-0 up.
And within seconds of the restart Lochee gained total control of the contest when Ryan Paterson motored through the gears and into the Hawick half, battled his way to the byeline and cut the ball back for Kerr Hay to fire home first time from 8 yards out and give Lochee a well earned 2-0 lead.
The home side were now playing with their tails up and both Ryan Paterson and Louis Joyce went close as the first half ticked out. 2-0 at half time with Lochee glad to have got themselves into a comfortable position after a brief scare.
In the second half Lochee picked up where they left off and created a good opening with Cavanagh and Paterson linking up well but Paterson’s shot hitting the side netting.
Then an impressive move out from the back saw Craig Moore send Ewan Murray down the left wing and his cross caused mayhem in the Hawick box as Kerr Hay was denied twice by the keeper then Bobby Linn’s shot was blocked by some frantic defending on the goal-line.
But it was only a matter of time until Lochee killed the tie off as the Bluebells started to showcase some clinical incisive football. Once again Murray got things moving down the left and some neat interplay between Hay and Linn opened up the defence for Hay to crash the ball in off the underside of the bar and give Lochee a 3-0 lead.
A slice of good fortune then gave Lochee a fourth goal when a booming kick out from keeper Jamie McCabe put the Hawick defender in an awkward position 30 yards out. He managed to direct a header backwards but with the keeper in an advanced position the ball trundled into the unguarded net. An own goal or is McCabe claiming a shot on target? We’ll let the dubious goals panel settle that debate!
As the final seconds ticked out, Kerr Hay almost made it five latching on to a long clearance and sending a looping shot over the keeper and back off the post.
4-0 it finished and if you’d offered manager Dougie Cameron that scoreline with today’s threadbare squad he’d have been a very happy man.
Lochee’s available players stood up to the test in fine fashion today. It was what an NFL coach might describe as “complimentary football” with every part of the team contributing to the win. McCabe kept us in the game with a couple of terrific saves at 0-0. The defence dealt well with the awkward physical puzzle of Harry Fowler up front for the visitors. Louis Joyce was a rock at right back for Lochee winning every battle. Callum Lamb’s attacking raids from midfield were a constant threat and Ryan Paterson’s creativity caused the Hawick defence problems all day. But our man of the match was hat-trick hero Kerr Hay. It is one thing to be on top of the game but you have to take your chances and there cannot be many penalty-box strikers as lethal as Hay at this level.
The draw for the first round proper will be made at 17:30 on Sunday. Keep your eyes peeled on our Facebook feed for updates.
Next up is an away game in the league against St James next Saturday at Fairfield Park.
As always – COME ON THE CHEE!!!
