Scottish Junior Cup Fifth Round

IRVINE MEADOW 0

LOCHEE UNITED 2

By Stewart McConnell

THREE-time winners Meadow saw their Scottish Cup journey come grinding to a halt as they were put to the sword by the East Super Premier League visitors.

Brian McGinty's side were made to rue missed chances, especially in the first half but ultimately, they lost out to a more streetwise Lochee side.

An exhibition in town documents Meadow's glittering past but this group of players are not yet ready to write their own chapter in the club's history- they are very much a work in progress and time will tell if they will can make an impact.

They had won two games on the spin coming into this but were up against slightly stronger opposition than the two sides they had defeated, Largs Thistle and Kilsyth Rangers.

Medda opened strongly and came so close in 10 minutes when a cheeky chip from 25 yards by Ben Black looked bound for the top corner but was brilliantly palmed away by Mark Fotheringham.

Then at the other end four minutes later a shot from 20 yards by Grant Lawson glanced just over the bar.

Shaun Newman came dashing to the edge of the box to save at the feet of Lawson in 21 minutes.

Medda won a free-kick 40 yards from goal in 22 minutes when Rhys Devlin was fouled but the set-piece from skipper Ben Carson was cleared by the visiting defence. From the resultant corner-kick, a Devlin header was cleared off the line. Medda came so close in 24 minutes when Ryan Carnwath sidefooted inches wide from 16 yards. Just a minute later Fotheringham clutched a 16-yard shot from Eddie McTernan on the line.

At the other end a free-kick from 22 yards by Reece Ritchie was brilliantly saved on the line by Newman in 28 minutes.

However Lochee went ahead against the run of play eight minutes later when Lawson thundered the ball home from 16 yards.

Medda were unlucky a minute after the break when a Con Boyle effort from 16 yards was saved by Fotheringham.

A Boyle cross into the box in 50 minutes was hooked away by a Lochee defender.

Goalscorer Lawson shot well over the bar from a corner in 51 minutes. Home substitute Graham Boyd shot across the face of goal a minute later.

Scott McComiskie shot across the face of goal from 16 yards for the visitors in 57 minutes.

Carson sent a 20-yard free-kick narrowly wide of target in 61 minutes. Carson, Devlin and visiting player Dougie Cameron were all booked following an exchange two minutes later.

However the visitors doubled their advantage in 67 minutes when the unchallenged Ritchie shot home from 12 yards.

A Carson cross-cum shot from 25 yards was easily saved by the visiting goalie in 80 minutes. Carson sent an effort just over the bar from 22 yards five minutes later.

The visiting goalie dropped a Carson corner-kick in 88 minutes, but there was no-one to capitalise. McTernan then sent in a shot which was deflected off his back by the visiting goalie and glanced past wide.

Then on full-time Boyd shot over the bar from six yards with the goal at his mercy- it summed up a frustrating afternoon for the hosts.

But now it's back to the drawing board for McGinty's men, who host runaway leaders Petershill on Saturday.

IRVINE MEADOW: Newman; McQuilken, McLennan, Begley, Buchanan, Carson, Devlin, Carnwath, McTernan, Black, Boyle. Subs: Hannah, Boyd, Willet, McGinty.

LOCHEE UNITED: Fotheringham; Kirk, Lunan, Miller, McInally, McComiskie, Cameron, Ritchie, Lawson, Smith, Birse. Subs: Webster, Davie, McIlravie, Reid.