Deja Vu at New Tinto as Spartans comeback edges out BSC

Posted on Saturday, April 16th, 2016

We’d seen this movie before.  Shot on location at New Tinto Park, Glasgow and starring the cast of young men from BSC Glasgow and Spartans.

Scene 1: Home side take the lead.  Scene 2: Teams engage in war of attrition.  Scene 3: Tourists comeback and snatch a win.

Sales of popcorn and fizzy pop would have been plentiful at the home of Benburb Juniors as two evenly matched and creative sides locked horns for the fifth time in seven weeks as they battled it out for the right to play Heriot Watt Uni in the 2^nd Round of the Knockout Cup.

A depleted Spartans were pleased to arrive with the opportunity for a warm-up this week ahead of the game against a BSC side who reshuffled their pack that contained Mark Toner and Tom Woods who featured in the match between the Lowland League teams earlier in the week.

The late evening sunshine was not the friend of the Spartans keeper who not only had to deal with the Glaswegian attack but an exceptionally low setting golden globe in the process.

Not only was it a feeling of déjà vu for Les Atkinson’s side when George Prince lobbed his keeper to offer BSC the lead on the quarter hour mark, but it truly was one of same again when Husnain Mansoor doubled his side’s advantage with 36 minutes played.

Half Time: BSC Glasgow u20s 2-0 Spartans u20s

Playing catch-up football at the ‘ground on the motorway’ has become an unwelcome trait and after Atkinson’s chat in the sheds at the break, the boys from the Burgh knew they’d have to come out guns blazing to salvage the knock-out tie.

That comeback began in earnest just 10 minutes after the interval.  Andrew Mair, wearing the coveted Captain’s armband, narrowed the gap to a solitary strike when the thundered home from inside the BSC box.

Thirteen minutes later, it was all square.  A defence splitting pass into the box by Harry Girdwood allowed Johnny Grotlin to compose himself before sending his effort low and hard through Joe Wilton into the back of the net.

The sensational comeback was completed with 17 minutes of the game left to play.   A sweeping move from defence to attack was thread through a plethora of passes towards Harry Girdwood who slid the ball under Wilton to put Spartans ahead, crucially, for the first time in the game.

With just six minutes left on the clock, BSC’s task to take the tie into extra-time went from a bit of a hill climb to one of mountainous proportions when goal scorer Mansoor was shown a red card after appearing to kick out at Tait whilst sitting on the synthetic surface after a challenge.

As the game entered into the depths of deepest injury time, Wilton swapped penalty boxes as BSC threw the proverbial kitchen sink towards sending the game into an additional thirty minutes of play.

It wasn’t to be, and yet another fantastic advert for the Under 20s league came to an end, with Spartans running out winners by the same scoreline for the second week in a row.

Final Score: BSC Glasgow u20s 2-3 Spartans u20s