Oakley United miss chance to win title at home and Crossgates beaten in cup semi-final

IT WAS a frustrating day for Stewart Kenny's side as they missed the chance to win the league title.

It was an out-of-character performance for Oakley as they were simply not at the level that they had been to get themselves into the situation where the league was in their grasp.

Oakley had the better chances but failed to put them away. Herriot Watt played some good football, finishing strongly, and, in the 95th minute, with near enough the last kick of the ball, grabbed the winner.

There is still hope for Oakley yet though as they could still win the league this Saturday away to Edinburgh South.

Oakley manager Stewart Kenny said: “We came up against a good side and sometimes you have to hold your hands up and admit that. We allowed them to play football and kept giving the ball back to them. We weren’t our usual selves. Whether or not it was nerves or the fact a few players were missing, I don’t know.”

A tense Oakley bench watch Saturday's match unfold.

On the disappointment of not winning the league at their own ground, Kenny said: “Of course it is. What a crowd that showed up, over 200 fans. To not do it in front of them is disappointing but, to be completely honest, I’ve no complaints about the result. Herriot Watt scored in the 95th minute and the draw was irrelevant anyway. They deserved it. We weren’t ruthless enough with our chances."

Looking ahead to this weekend's crunch match, he said: “It’s not just the biggest game of our season it could well be the biggest game of my career, never mind the players. We’ve just got to go out there and have a good week at training and bring that into the game. We will be up for it but we have to be professional and get the job done against a team that’s very hard to beat.

"This would be the cherry on top of the icing on top of the cake. We’ve done great to get to where we are. These boys are relentless and will not give up. We want the pinnacle, we want the top reward and to mix it with the big boys.”

League Cup semi-final: Linlithgow Rose 1 Crossgates Primrose 0

CROSSGATES' season came to a close as they just missed out on a second cup final of the campaign.

Primrose went into the game missing their captain, Brian Ritchie, whose girlfriend gave birth earlier in the day.

There was little between the two sides, with each team playing some good football, but Linlithgow probably had the better chances throughout the game and finally broke through in the 63rd minute. A free kick into the box caused confusion between the Primrose defence and goalkeeper, which allowed the Linlithgow striker to nip in and score.

Crossgates put up a great fight for the remainder of the game but it wasn’t to be on the day.

“I thought we made a really good fist of it, our workrate and effort was tremendous," boss Alan Campbell told Press Sport.

"Our organisation was really good. I think over the 90 minutes they had the better chances and were more in control of the game, meaning they probably deserved to go through.”

The game sees the curtain come down on a successful season for Crossgates after winning the Alex Jack Cup and finishing fifth in what has been a competitive league.

“I think just after the game, there is the initial disappointment of missing out on a final but having slept on it, it has been a great season for us, probably our best ever season, I don’t remember a Crossgates in my lifetime having as good a season as we’ve had," Campbell added.

"We’re really pleased with our progress and we can enjoy our rest now before getting back into it next season. We’ve got most players signed up again for next season. We’ll be looking to recruit some new players, and we’re in a great position to do so after the season we have had. It won’t be wholesale changes, just some fine-tuning. It’s not going to be easy finding any players better than what we’ve already got after this season. It will be a tough league next season but one we are looking forward to.”

Primrose had secured their place in the semi-final in a thrilling encounter with Penicuik at Humbug Park.

Crossgates celebrate during the tie with Penicuik.

It was goals galore as Brian Ritchie opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a trademark header into the far corner.

Seven minutes later, Mark McKenzie doubled the lead, after he followed up a rebound from the Penicuik keeper's save.

Primrose went in to half-time feeling they maybe should have added a third and in the second half, the errors started to creep in for Crossgates.

In the 50th minute, a long clearance from Penicuik forced the Primrose keeper to come off his line but he was beaten to it by the visitors; striker who chipped in to make it 2-1.

Shortly after, it was all-square after a fierce strike from a Penicuik player from outside the box found the bottom left corner.

Then, on the hour, Penicuik took the lead for the first time after a similar free kick into the box and header to that of Ritchie at the same end in the first half.

Things were looking bleak for Primrose but with five minutes to go, Archie Campbell stepped up and scored an inch-perfect free kick, the best goal of the day, to send the match into extra time.

Throughout the additional period, there were plenty of chances, with both sides looking tired. The deadlock was broken with minutes to go when Calum Smith won it for Crossgates with a striker’s finish after some great play down the right.

Campbell said: “I think, the first half, we played as well as we had all season. We should’ve known that Penicuik wouldn’t lie down and that they’d come back fighting. We contributed to our own downfall and then we were punished.

"Full credit to the players though, they dug deep and showed real spirit. We were overjoyed with the goal that got us through and the players were brilliant to a man, they were great.”

Saturday's fixture: East of Scotland First Division Conference B: Edinburgh South v Oakley United (2.30pm).