One Step Closer!

Fauldhouse United increased their chances of automatic promotion with a gutsy second half performance against a Kirriemuir team fighting to stay in the Premier League. Not a lot of football to be played in the opening stages on a hard and bumpy pitch with the first creative chance in ten minutes, a good run down the left flank from full back Rees Smith saw him fouled just outside the 18yd box, Gary Shanks took the free kick but it came to nothing coming back off the wall. Kirriemuirs Farquharson tested United keeper Andy Murphy on twenty minutes but he was up to it and saved well. As Fauldhouse tried to get their passing game together some good play between Michael McCormack and Kenny Martin resulted in Kenny curling a shot just inches wide of the post. In an uneventful first forty five both teams went in all square at the interval...Kirriemuir Th. 0 Fauldhouse Utd. 0.

Shortly after the restart Kenny Martin went through in on keeper Stewart who stood his ground and made himself a big target to palm it away and out for a corner kick. United were getting more chances now and with Mark Wilkins on in place of Shanksy after a quarter of an hour things started to liven up. Jamie Gallagher, Kenny Martin and Clark Campbell all came close in the next ten minutes as Fauldhouse upped the tempo. Disaster struck five minutes later when Fauldhouse striker Kenny Martin was shown a red card and the ten men had to roll up their sleeves and step up another gear, Mark Wilkins duly did when shortly after from a great pass by Shaun Martin he raced into the box and tucked the ball away with some assurance under the big keeper for the opener, 1-0...great finish!  Mark could have doubled his tally when he tried his luck to lob Stewart but the keeper got his fingertips to it and gathered at the second attempt to keep his side in it. The closing stages were a nervy affair with just the one goal in it but we saw them out for a final score... Kirriemuir Thistle 0 Fauldhouse United 1.

One more hurdle out the way in the race for promotion and on to our last home game of the season against Glenrothes next Saturday.

Fauldhouse United: Murphy, Ross, Smith, Scott, Gallagher, Campbell, Shanks, Fallon, K.Martin, McCormack, S.Martin, -subs: Peace(gk) Fairweather, Donnelly, Deans, Wilkins.

Kirriemuir Thistle: Stewart, Heggie, Smith, Farquharson, Bertie, Morrice, Logan, George, Archibald, Russell, Millar -subs: Ogg, Barclay.

                                                         "The Parkview"