GARTCAIRN OUTCLASS NEWMAINS
Gartcairn produced a display worthy of a higher league by comprehensively thumping a spirited Newmains side. Both teams needed the 3 points to push their promotion hopes on with only a few games remaining this season. The game was played in glorious April sunshine at MTC Park with a good crowd along to watch their local junior side.
The match started well with both teams fighting hard to create chances without either side capitalising. Cairns gaffer, Gerry Bonham, went with his trusted 2 up front on Misanjo and Harty and it was clear that the Newmains defence couldn’t handle them and with the added trouble of in-form Lee Pettigrew, it was only a matter of time before the deadlock was broken. However, it wasn’t a striker who netted first. Gartcairn won a free kick on the left hand side about 25 yards from goal. Up stepped Scott Murphy to hammer the ball low and bend it round the wall to beat the Newmains keeper on 39 minutes.
What followed was 4 minutes of goals from Gartcairn. Immediately after the restart on 40 minutes, Cairns won posession and Misanjo was put clean through and he rattled the ball home past the keepers left hand side. And then 3 minutes later, the ball made it’s way to the right of the Newmains penalty box, Lee Pettigrew played the ball in before Barry “basher” Canning side footed the ball home from 5 yards on 43 minutes. Newmains were positively shell-shocked.
HALF TIME Gartcairn 3 – 0 Newmains.

The second half started the way the first ended…with Gartcairn dominating possession and creating chance after chance. Martin Harty put a header over the bar after some great work by Craig Holmes on the right. Not putting the chances away looked like it could be costly when Newmains, against the run of play, went up the park and scored a well worked goal and O’Hare put the ball nicely by Martyn Meek in goals. This sparked Cairns back into life when on 79 minutes a cross whipped into the box from the right was met by defender Ryan Kennedy to bullet a header past the despairing Newmains keeper. Four minutes later, Scot Murphy got his 2nd of the game when the ball broke to him at the edge of the box. He showed the kind of footwork and composure that has made him a firm favourite with the fans. He dribbled past two defenders and slammed the ball past the keeper.

Gerry Bonham continues to be a history maker for Gartcairn as he notched up his 3rd win on the trot – the first time this has happened for Gartcairn. Afterwards a jubilant Bonham said: “I’m absolutely proud of the boys tonight. I know what we are capable of and we showed that tonight. We totally dominated the game and it could have, and possibly should have, been a lot more. All credit to Newmains but we were not going to be beaten tonight after we got going. We look ahead now to the weekend and 3 games left – 3 wins is very, very achievable.”