Whitehill Welfare are the visitors to City Park tomorrow evening in a crucial league fixture as we try and catch Dalbeattie Star at the top of the table.  Co-manager Mike Lawson has been looking ahead:

“When we were thrown four games in eleven days Sam and I knew we were going into a critical period as far as our league title aspirations were concerned. Whitehill is the final of the four games and arguable the hardest.  Lothian are a good side and deserved to beat us on the day but our old adversaries Whitehill are the team everyone in the East of Scotland looks up to. For years the league’s standard bearers and current league champions they’ll be coming to City Park tomorrow to prove a point.

For our part we have to show that despite being short of one or two regulars we are up for the fight and will attempt to take the game to our Rosewell counterparts. Tomorrow we must stand up and be counted and it’s up to our more experienced players to pull the younger ones through. We are well aware that nothing is decided tomorrow and that Dan and Alex for two will be back available for selection from Saturday, but we all know how important this game is.

As well as the unavailability of David, Dan and Alex there’s little chance that Stewart will be able to take part and there are also doubts about Keith McLeod’s fitness after he took an knock on Saturday.”

Stew - not quite match fit yet

The players have a light training session at City Park tonight and skipper Stewart is also eargerly awaiting the game “We will take the lessons from Saturday and move on, we have a job on our hands against Whitehill and tonight we must prepare as well as we can”. 

Unfortunately our 19s went down 7 – 1 to Edinburgh City in their League Cup final yesterday.  City are a good team and played very well.  They may well go the whole season in “domestic” football undefeated which will be a fantastic achievement.  Phil Mshelbwala scored our goal and with most of our players eligible again next season we will be looking for revenge.

Our Womens team got back to winning ways with a 4 – 0 win over Forfar up there.  Debbie McWhinnie scoring three with Julie Melrose getting the other.  With Glasgow City beating Celtic it means we can win the league by winning all our reaming games…including Glasgow City away.  Sounds straight-forward!!

The 19s play their biggest game of the season tomorrow when they on Edinburgh City in the League Cup Final.  The game is at riccarton with a 2pm ko.  City have only lost one game all season and that was to Dumbarton in the Scottish Youth Cup.  Our youngsters have had an up and down season but tomorrow gives us a chance at winning some silverware.  Manager Gary McLelland is looking forward to the game.  “We played well against City in the league on Wednesday and with the breaks we could well have taken something from the game.  Our players are really looking forward to the game and we’re hoping for a big Spartans turn-out”.  The action kicks off at 2pm.

Our Womens team are hoping to get back to winning ways with a league game away to the improving Forfar.  Thankfully its the Womens team and they won’t have goalscoring ace Ross Campbell in their line up.

The 1st XI lost 4 -2 to a spirited Lothian Thistle at Saughton Enclosure this afternoon.  We were 2 – 1 ahead at half time after a Keith McLeod double.  We were playing well but the pace of Dongo was coausing real difficulties.  The roof fell in when we lost three goals in the first fifteen minutes of the seond half.  Although we had plenty possession their ‘keeper was hardly threatened.  With Dalbeattie winning the pressure at the top is mounting – we are four points behind with three games in hand. Team: Flockhart, O’Donnel, Archibald, Opilka (Preston 75), Archibald, Malin (Devlin 75), Hoskins, Manson, Mcleod, Walker, Kader, Henretty Subs not used: Woods, Hair, Fowlie

The 2nd scored a resounding 8 – 0 win over bottom of the table Millbank at the Academy.   The goals were shared out, Paul Sutherland 2, Keith Boyes 2, Jo Steele, Adam Perry, Michael Moffat, Sam Scott.  The team was Bartec, Young, Bunyon, Steele, Sutherland, Scott (McLeod), Burns, Boyes (McDonald), Moffat, Cartwright (Harris), Perry.

The 3rd XI lost 5 – 0 to Lochend in their Stead and Simpson Cup tie, losing 6 – 1 on aggregate.

The legends beat Lothian thislte 2 – 0 last night with both goals from 59 year old Mike Lawson.  Both came in the first half.  The first a volley from a Craig Ford cross, the second a cross cum shot from a clever Dougie Samuel free kick.  Both teams tired in the second half – Mike should have had his hat trick but fluffed his kick from 6 yards and then Kenny Hughes missed when he tried to round the ‘keeper.  He should have squared the ball from Mike to score but Kenny later said “I thought about squaring the ball to Mike but the thought of him scoring a hat trick was too much”.  Roger McKeating at sweeper put ina  convincing display to win the man of the match award.

Roger - MoM

Team: Graham (Kellacher), Lumsden (Coldridge), McKeating, Hoy (Hutton), Samuel, Gowrie, Ford, Hughes, Lawson, Williams, Nixon.

As Mike said yesterday we have another tough encounter at Saughton Enclosure tomorrow against Lothian Thistle.  We don’t have a great record at the Enclosure and the pitch, given its popularity for local cup finals, won’t be in great shape.  Struan Preston’s ankle knock kept him on the bench on Wednesday but he’s been passed fit and with Keith McLeod also back we have options to freshen up our attack.  Stewart Fowlie is recovering but not fast enough to start.  The ko is 2.30pm. 

Struan - fit

The 2nd XI are in league action against Millbank at the Academy with a 1.30pm ko.  Manager Mark Lamb has a number of players missing including Andy Mitchell and Martin Douglas from his midweek line up but Richie Harris is back in the squad and ‘keeper David Paterek is back from holidays.  Nick Reid’s flight back from holiday has been delayed so it gives Adam Perry a chance to close the gap at the top of the scorer’s charts.

The 3rd XI also play at the Academy, their ko is 3.30pm against Lochend in the second leg of a cup tie.  We trail 2 – 1 from Monday’s first game however we have a far stronger squad out tomorrow.

Manager Euan Hoy has pieced together a squad for tonight’s Old Boys game against Lothian Thistle.  the action kicks off at 8pm at the Academy.  The squad is: Kellacher, Graham, Gowrie, McKeating, Ford, Hughes, Cowie, Hutton, Lawson, Williams, Nixon, Samuel, Lumsden, Colbridge, McDonald, Hoy.

Andy - hoping to atone for a number of bad misses in the last game