Peebles Rovers 0 Gala Fairydean 5
EOS FIRST DIVISION
John Clayton reports from Whitestone Park
PLAYING a midweek fixture, Gala kept the pressure on at the top of the table with a comprehensive victory visiting Peebles Rovers.
Peebles shot just over the Gala cross bar before 15 seconds had passed but two minutes later Gala were on the attack and Scott Nightingale’s shot was deflected for a corner.
Jack Hay then sprinted clear and rounded the Peebles keeper but was forced wide of the goal in the process and his shot was blocked. However, Scott Nightingale picked up the lose ball and laid it back to Gerri Rossi whose shot beat the Peebles keeper despite him getting a touch on the ball.
A minute later, Nightingale picked up a poor clearance and drew the keeper off his line before laying the ball off to Jack Hay to blast the ball home for the second.
Gala received a blow midway through the half when Jay Wilson received a straight red card for a high clearance when he was completely unaware of a Peebles player coming in to head the ball. There was no intent on Wilson’s part but he had to leave the field.
In the second minute of the second half, Craig Tyson received the ball on the left and shot across the Peebles keeper and into the far corner of the net for Gala’s third goal. Peebles were reduced to nine players in the space of two minutes when their numbers four and eight received second yellow cards.
With the match well into the last quarter Fraser Lothian began to ring the changes and with six minutes remaining, Rob Hewitson looked up and saw the Peebles goalkeeper off his line and coolly chipped the ball over him for the fourth goal.
In the final minute, Hewistson turned provider with a ball into the six-yard box from the left of the goal area which Michael Fairburn controlled and then turned to slot home the fifth and final goal.