West proved to be best at Beechwood Park in the 3rd round of the South Region Cup as The Buffs coasted to a 0-2 win against EOSFL Premier Division side Sauchie Juniors FC. It was undoubtedly the Buffs’ best performance under the reign of Kevin Kelly as his side dominated the game from the first till the last minute.
The Buffs began the match as they meant to go on when Bryan Boylan turned his man excellently on the right wing before cutting back to Mark Lamont on the edge of the box, Lamont took a touch and then shot goalwards from just inside the box. Unlike Lamont’s usual quality in front of goal, his effort was tame and was easily saved by the hosts’ goalkeeper, Sean Robertson. However, this was only the start to Robertson’s busy afternoon in the Sauchie goal and his side could’ve easily been down 0-2 within the first 15 minutes when Boylan chased down a direct ball before laying it back to Chris Bell on the left flank, Chris hung one up at the back post for Duncan to attack but his header bounced off the bar and over the top. Dylan Duncan was straight back into the action though after he drove with the ball for around 30 yards down the right wing before beating his man well at the byline, Dylan crossed the ball into the middle of the box where Lamont was free, however, Lamont didn’t connect cleanly with his head which left the ball spinning towards the back post for the incoming Chris Bell. Unfortunately, Chris failed to test the goalkeeper as he sliced his half volley wide of the near post. Sauchie looked to pounce for the first time in the match when Lawrence Hendry slipped on the soft surface whilst driving with the ball, Sauchie picked up the loose ball and laid off Rhys Caves on the edge of the box, Caves thundered the ball towards the top left corner of the goal where Mateusz Miller was diving across to make a magnificent save. Buffs showed some great interchanging play in the middle of the park throughout the half and created another huge chance for Dylan Duncan after clever work in midfield form Conor McLaughlin and MacIntyre. McLaughlin set the ball to Blair MacIntrye who sprayed a ball out wide for Dylan Duncan, Duncan drove into the box whilst holding his man off excellently. The Sauchie goalkeeper does well to manage to get out and narrow the angle for Dylan and save his low shot. This put an end to a first half that the visitors should’ve easily been a few goals up if it wasn’t for their wastefulness in front of goal.
It didn’t take long after the interval for The Buffs to create another great chance as Mark Lamont smashed the underside of the crossbar with a left footed shot within the first minute of the half. Another massive chance went begging for The Buffs when Lamont slid Dylan Duncan through on goal, Dylan dribbled towards the goalkeeper before trickling an effort just past the right post of the Sauchie net. This time it was Lamont sliding Boylan through on goal, Bryan’s first-time effort was well saved by Sean Robertson with the goalkeeper somehow managing to keep Boylan’s rebound effort out of the net for a tremendous double save. Sauchie’s only moment of the half came when full back, Tom Harrison, swung a deep ball into the back post which found the opposition right winger’s head, but his effort went over the bar. The longer the game went on at 0-0 the more anxious Buffs fans would’ve been as there was a feeling that all of those missed chances may come back to haunt their side. Finally, with 19 minutes left until extra time, the travelling Buffs fans had something to celebrate. A good move had Boylan receiving the ball on the right-hand side, Bryan then slipped the underlapping Adam Caldwell in, who got to the byline before cutting back for the charging Mark Lamont who tapped into the net from the edge of the 6-yard box. The goals didn’t stop their either. Chris Bell made a great marauding run into the box before being cut down by the Sauchie central defender which had the referee pointing to the spot. After a lengthy wait goalscorer Lamont slotted into the bottom left corner to seal the cup upset for The Buffs.
The Buffs were outstanding to a man on the day but, for me, the standouts were Chris Bell on The Buffs left wing who terrorised the Sauchie defence all game and midfielder Blair MacIntyre who seemed to be everywhere for the whole 90 minutes. This report may sound biased but there’s nothing that can really describe The Buffs dominance in the tie, with the scoreline not reflecting how comfortable The Buffs were at all. The only criticism for The Buffs would be the number of chances missed but if performances like that become the norm then Kilwinning Rangers will be a very difficult game for anyone this season.
