Stenhousemuir vs Cove Rangers

A spectacular Warrior’s win ensured we wrapped up all three points against the Toonsers despite a late goal in stoppage time.

The first half took a bit of time to get going with both teams quite evenly matched in the opening 20 minutes.

Cove captain, Fyvie set up what appeared to be the opener for the Toonsers in the 23rd minute however, McGrath’s tap in was ruled offside.

A windy first half at Ochilview Park nearly gave us the home advantage when Bilham’s 25th minute free kick carried itself just over the bar.

Cove did strike first in the 32nd minute through Marshall, who from very close range, rifled his shot into the net. 0-1.

An exceptional passage of play allowed us to draw level in the 44th minute. Meechan aimed a sensational cross field ball to Taylor which enabled him to bring the ball down and drive towards the by line. Taylor’s low cross found the feet of Corey O’Donnell who tapped the ball in for his first goal of the season. 1-1. Assistant manager Brown Ferguson believed “the goal just before half time was a great time for us to come in.”

A slightly disappointing start to the half was rectified by O’Donnell’s late goal. Brown Ferguson thought “we didn’t play particularly well in the first half, but started the game well and in fairness to Cove I though they had the better spell in the middle of the half.”

We definitely came out the traps in the second half and with only 3 minutes on the clock, Mikey Anderson thumped home a 25 yard screamer! His top corner shot lifted us into the lead. 2-1.

Anderson once again could have added to his goal tally when Alston’s lay off allowed Mikey to rocket a half volley towards the Cove goal, but the shot was just wide.

The 57th minute provided us with our third and final goal, with man of the match Nat Wedderburn heading in his first goal of the campaign. An expertly swung in corner from Taylor found Wedderburn unmarked in the box, which allowed him to head the ball home. 3-1.

We had an abundance of possession and a great drive on from the crowd, however we just couldn’t find the back of the net again.

The final opportunity of the game came for the visitors deep into stoppage time. Declan Glass’ pass in the 92nd minute caused a slight goalmouth scramble which allowed McGrath to bundle the ball into the net, giving the visitors a short-lived sense of hope. 3-2. Ferguson dubbed this as “a nervy wee last minute, that was a disappointing part, but really nice to get all three points.”

A dominant display at home secured all three points for the Warriors with some brilliant goals along the way. Ferguson concluded by giving great credit to the players for their second half performance: “I thought their reaction in the second half was excellent. I thought we really dominated the second period.”

Next weekend we take on Annan Athletic at home when we will be aiming to clinch another three points. Stay tuned via all our social media channels for up to date news on the Warriors.

Match Report by Louise Davidson 

The Warriors are on the hunt for another three points at home this weekend when we face The Toonsers!

This Saturday, Cove Rangers come to town in search of their first win of the season. This is the first time in 4 years that we will have faced the Toonsers in a league game.

The last time we faced each other, Cove were the victors in a 3-0 win, with goals from Cove danger men McAllister and Megginson making all the difference.

Megginson, who still plays for Cove, will be seeking to add to his previous brace this weekend. However, 4 years makes all the difference and under manager Gary and a different starting 11, we will look to take our overall victories to three against the Toonsers.

24 goals have been scored across all meetings with these clubs and we will be aiming to round that up to at least 25!

Warriors, please make sure you come to Ochilview park tomorrow and support Gary and the team!