Ellon Thistle v Newburgh

Dickie Trophy

Ellon Thistle hosted third division Newburgh at the Meadows in the second round of the Dickie Trophy with a place in the last sixteen of the competition at stake. Although Thistle were favourites to win the tie, there was a surprise omission from manager Kevin Kennedy's first eleven. Billy Dailly was relegated to the bench with Steven Beaton wearing the sacred number 10 shirt and partnering Michael Wild in attack. Ryan Birnie dropped back to the defence in the absence of Bruce Alexander.

Ellon started the game well and enjoyed the majority of possession. Steven Beaton was denied twice early on by the Newburgh keeper who made a number of fine saves throughout the game and Martyn Duncan saw his effort from a tight angle strike a post after he had beaten two Newburgh defenders. At the other end, Andy Dickinson in the Thistle goal had very little to do but was alert when called upon to deny a Newburgh attacker.

Beaton had another chance to open the scoring but once he eventually got the ball on his trusty left foot, he blazed over from 18 yards out. It was only a matter of time before Thistle broke the deadlock and when a corner from the right found its way to Michael WILD, he left the Newburgh keeper with no chance and gave Ellon the advantage at the interval.

Half-Time: Ellon Thistle 1 Newburgh 0

In the second half, Thistle continued their onslaught on the visitor's goal and pressed to double their lead. Newburgh struggled to find a way out of their own half as Thistle's defensive trio of Henderson, Anderson and skipper Birnie easily dealt with Newburgh's long ball tactics.

Billy Dailly was introduced early in the second half and immediately caused problems for Newburgh wide on the left. Not long later, the substitute found the feet of Michael WILD who breezed past his marker and slotted the ball into the corner of the net.

Another substitute who had an immediate impact on the game was Mark COCKBURN. The winger picked up the ball wide on the right and created some space to get the ball into the box. However, his wind assisted cross-cum-shot curled into the corner of the net to put the game beyond the visitors.

To complete the series of inspired substitutions, Richard LONGMUIR added a fourth goal after some good work from Michael Wild. Wild himself had an opportunity to claim a hat-trick from a free-kick on the edge of the box but his effort would have been more fitting at Murrayfield.

Final Score: Ellon Thistle 4 Newburgh 0

Ellon Thistle: A Dickinson, N Henderson, D Anderson, R Birnie, S Cruickshanks, M Duncan, N Mitchell (M Cockburn), C Davidson (B Dailly), N Murray (R Longmuir), S Beaton, M Wild. Subs Not Used: G Giles, N Birnie.