Shotts 3 Rossvale 2: Late rally not enough for Vale

Rossvale got an early warning the way this game was going to go as early in the first minute when a Kit Cummins shot rebounded off the bottom of the upright.

And three minutes later, when keeper Jamie Donnelly got caught with the ball at his feet, again by Cummins, he stuck it into the back of the net to put Shotts one up.

Shotts’ Ally Martin had put his stamp on this game from the start and a good piece of work between him and Ryan Sullivan saw a couple of close things whistle past Donnelly’s post soon after.

Danny Burns then turned in the Rossvale box and fired a shot narrowly past.

Rossvale just couldn’t get into the game as Shotts used the full width of Hannah Park and Ryan Kennedy was unlucky not to increase their lead in the 15th minute when his header from Dean Sutherland’s corner hit the upright and spun out of play.

A good move between Gary Giffin and Liam Crichton saw the latter narrowly miss for the ‘Vale.

At the other end Cummins was tripped just outside the box as he bore down on goal but Martin wasted the resulting free-kick by shooting past.

In the second half Rossvale came out more fired up and with the wind at their back went straight into attack.

Liam McGonigle was pulled down and Peter Bradley’s free-kick came close but landed on top of the net.

McGonigle then shaved the Shotts upright with a shot before the home side broke upfield and Cummins again tested Donnelly who brought out a fine save.

Two minutes later Rossvale were level. Giffin was tripped inside the box and Crichton sent Murdoch the wrong way from the spot.

It may have been a soft penalty, but Shotts got an even softer one two minutes later when Sullivan’s run into the box resulted in the referee evening things up.

Cummins’s penalty was brilliantly saved by Donnelly but Danny Burns was first to react and scored with the rebound.

Shotts went further ahead when Burns fired an unsaveable shot from 25 yards into Donnelly’s top left-hand corner.

‘Vale seemed to come to life after this and both Jamie Hunter and Steven Seaton fired in shots which went close and with Seaton’s hitting the upright.

Their good spell was rewarded when, after the ball bounced about the Shotts penalty box, Giffin scored from close in.

The ref added nearly five minutes of injury time, during which period home defender Sullivan was sent off, but no matter how hard ‘Vale tried they just couldn’t get the equaliser.