LATEST MATCH REPORT
Reports from matches this season go to the fixtures section and click on the report linked to the match you want to read about. Alternatively for earlier seasons go to the fixtures section of the archive for the relevant year.
QUEEN OF THE SOUTH 0 : 4 GRETNA 2nd January 2007
Scott
Rating: 5.00
Swift
Rating: 4.43
J Thomson
Rating: 5.01
S2
Lauchlan
Rating: 4.51
Paton
Rating: 5.54
Gibson
Rating: 7.38
Scally
Rating: 6.45
O'Neill
Rating: 4.51
S1
Moon
Rating: 4.72
S3
Weir
Rating: 4.92
O'Connor
Rating: 5.02
SUBSTITUTES
S1 - 57
Callaghan
Rating: 4.15
S2 - 57
Henderson
Rating: 4.25
S3 - 73
A Thomson
Rating: 3.73
Burns
Corr
SUBMIT YOUR mom RATINGS
Members of the Internet Fan Club can award players marks out of ten for their performance today. The player with the most points awarded in the two days following a match will be the IFC Man of the Match. All of the points will then be added to a running total for each player and the results published in the mom League Table.

Name or IFC No.
MATCH SUMMARY
Ian McCall stuck largely to the side and formation that has competed well in the past two outings. There was one exception as Scott Robertson dropped out of the squad and Warren Moon came into a wide left role, possibly in preparation for the departure of Willie Gibson move to Kilmarnock - if such a move does go through. Gibson himself, in what may have been his last Queens appearance, was given the right wing to work his magic on this week and proved a troublesome foe for the Gretna defence.

Queens began the game the brighter of the two sides but could have fallen ahead inside the first few minutes as a Colin Scott blunder presented a chance to David Graham but the former Stair Park striker failed to make a decent connection and Scott gathered comfortably.

From a goalmouth stramash the ball eventually fell for Sean O'Connor who managed to get a shot on goal that beat Alan Main but also beat the crossbar. Willie Gibson then made sure that Main remained alert as he turned inside from his right wing position and struck a goal bound effort that the experienced Gretna 'keeper did well to touch round the post. The same player then put in a good cross to the back post where the diminutive Graham Weir out jumped Martin Canning to get a header on target but was denied once again as the ball was touched over the bar by Main.

Sean fires past the defender and 'keeper but also over the bar
On the quarter hour mark Gibson again turned inside and shot for goal, this time Main collected the effort without too much fuss.

Gretna scored on twenty five minutes when David Graham managed to beat Eric Paton down the right and then draw the remainder of the defence across to him leaving McMenamin with acres of space to slot the ball past Scott to open the scoring, if McMenamin had not been on hand to get it then Skelton too had tons of space and was unmarked at the back of the box. The goal was against the run of play but to be fair to Gretna they did what we don't seem to be able to and that is take their chances.

The Gretna forwards must have thought that it was Christmas for the first goal against no defence
The major threat for Gretna in the first half seemed to be coming all down their right hand side with McGuffie and McMenamin tormenting Moon and Paton, neither could have enjoyed their afternoon today. The remainder of the half was played out reasonably evenly with Queens just about having the territorial advantage.

Jim Lauchlan attempts to get his foot on the ball
The second half was only a couple of minutes old when the game was pretty much killed off as a contest. Shoddy defending allowed Gavin Skelton to have the freedom down their left flank to run in on Colin Scott unchallenged before cooly finishing with an effort knocked over the 'keepers diving body.

Queens did show some character in the immediate after match of the goal and set up a series of corners from which Alan Main was forced to tip another effort over the bar. Ian McCall rang the changes on fifty seven minutes and introduced Murray Henderson as a straight swap for the tiring Jim Lauchlan and Barry Callaghan for Warren Moon who had had a particularly uncomfortable time out on the wing. The introduction of Callaghan allowed Gibson to take up his favoured left wing role as Queens looked for a way back and into the game. However before the changes had even looked like settling in former Queens star Derek Townsley, coming forward from his right-back position put the nail in the coffin of the match with a 20 yard shot that flew straight into the far corner of the net and from which Colin Scott must surely have been unsighted so late was his arrival.

Deggsie turns away to celebrate as the ball nestles in the net and Scott is beaten
The final change of the match for Queens saw Andy Thomson given fifteen minutes for Graham Weir but even a legend couldn't have been expected to notch four goals in such a short period. Then with only four minutes left to play Gavin Skelton did exactly what he had done earlier as he was given time and space to put the ball past Colin Scott who wasn't having a great shot stopping day today.

In all honesty there wasn't four goals between the sides, both teams had as many chances, Gretna were confident and took them whilst the men in blue didn't and that sums up the game.


[Back to Queens front page]