Berwick v Linton Hotspur Match Report
Berwick cruised to a 4-0 win over Linton Hotspur in Round 2 of the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup at Shielfield Park.
The Gers opened the scoring through Danny Handling before Struan Mair doubled the advantage after twenty minutes. Josh O’Connor scored in first half stoppage time to give the Dream Team a 3-0 lead at half-time. Callum Mackay completed the scoring in the final ten minutes which sees Berwick register their first competitive victory of the season.
Berwick began the game on top as they held the majority of possession. They would soon create their first opportunity as Mair executed a good run down the right before squaring the ball to Handling in the middle. However, the Gers forward couldn’t bundle the ball towards goal and the ball was cleared.
Just before the 15-minute mark, a Berwick short corner was played to Michael Barfoot. His cross to the near post was flicked on by Handling and the ball nestled in the top left corner to give the Dream Team the lead.
Five minutes later and Handling was at the centre of another attack as he gathered the ball with control in midfield before turning and slipping in O’Connor down the left-hand side. He managed to pick out Mair at the back post who dinked the ball over Rory Panther and into the net to make it 2-0 to Berwick.
The Gers continued to control the game and looked a threat going forward on a consistent basis. O’Connor sprinted down the left before cutting inside and his shot caused a challenge for Panther, but the Linton Hotspur keeper eventually gathered.
Linton Hotspur were showing signs of neat play but were struggling to put together any shooting opportunities. It was Berwick who continued to look the more likely to score as a long ball picked out Kyle Somers before he passed to Handling. He was determined to add to his tally as he drove inside, but his shot was blocked.
As the game entered first half stoppage time, Mark McConnell’s header forward was met poorly by Paul Currie as his backward header caused havoc that Blair Golightly couldn’t deal with. O’Connor managed to nip in ahead of the Linton defender and he dinked the ball over the onrushing Panther into the back of the net. The Gers held a three-goal advantage at half-time.
The first chance of the second half was out of nowhere and it came for the visitors. Jacob Riley had space to cut inside, and he opted for a shot from well outside the box. His effort flew past the stranded Owen Hayward and smacked off the bar in what was Linton’s first shot that troubled Berwick’s goal all game.
Berwick were causing their opponents trouble from corners. A short routine made its way to Caelan McCrone on the edge of the box. His shot was blocked by Ciaran Young.
The corner that followed was this time sent into the box which caused chaos amongst the Hotspur defence. The ball eventually broke to Mackay whose volley was blocked by a combination of Linton Hotspur defenders before they scrambled the ball clear.
The visitors began to create chances whilst continuing to show some neat play with the ball. Sam Meaney found himself in space after some good play and his shot forced Hayward into a save but he was eventually able to gather.
Berwick nearly had their fourth midway through the second period. Greg Binnie dropped deep before launching a delightful long ball to send O’Connor in on goal. However, his effort was poor as his shot went straight at Panther to spurn a chance that looked easier to score than miss.
With just under twenty minutes remaining, Isaac Deh executed a brilliant cameo to skip past numerous players before playing Binnie in on goal. His shot was well saved by Panther in what would have been a great goal.
The resulting corner saw Panther fail to deal with it and the ball landed perfectly for Callum Mackay to tap into the empty net and score. Berwick with a fourth goal to complete a comfortable evening under the lights at Shielfield Park.
The Dream Team saw out a 4-0 win as they advance to the third round of the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup. Berwick return to league action this Saturday as they travel to Brechin City in search for their first Lowland League East win of the season.