Mill Utd won the Under 21 Glasgow Cup after a comprehensive 5-0 victory over Calderhill Thistle at the home of Shettleston Juniors.
It wasn’t an afternoon for the feint-hearted as Calderhill kicked the game off in the driving rain, and with the wind at their backs Calderhill went on the attack. Captain, Scott Jannaway, used the conditions to test the Mill Utd keeper when he sent an ambitious long range free kick skidding off the surface. Nathan Wharton between the sticks saved well under pressure.
A short time later and Calderhill won another free kick as a Mill Utd clearance was held up in the wind, prompting a scrappy foul 25 yards from goal. Jannaway had a second opportunity to use the wind to his advantage but fired a powerful effort just wide of the left post.
Before long Mill Utd came into the game and adopted a tactic of keeping the ball on the deck to avoid the obvious problems caused by wind, as they set about trying to work the channels. It was a full blooded game. Mill Utd captain Kieran Connachan received a bloodied mouth after becoming the meat in a Calderhill sandwich. Then a high impact collision knocked Mill Utd’s Ben Robert Falconer flat out. Nobody on the park could be accused of pulling out of a challenge.
Calderhill nearly broke the deadlock through Mathew Coghill. A scramble in the box resulted in a Coghill shot into ground which saw the ball bounce over the goalkeeper who recovered well to tip the ball over the bar.
Then the opening goal was scored up the other end of the park by Mill Utd midfielder Darren Sneddon. Scott Nicol on the left wing was majestic, turning the full back inside out, before he picked out Sneddon arriving from midfield in the six yard box to finish clinically. 1-0.
The game roared on and there were ferocious battles taking place all over the park. Calderhill’s Stephen Cowan was grafting hard upfront in isolation much of the time, but managing to make a nuisance of himself, while Jordon Conlon went to war in midfield. Although equally gritty, Mill Utd were more composed on the ball and showed more quality. Nicol utilised his great range of passing from left back, while Sneddon was cool under pressure in the engine room and striker Dean Lindsay was making intelligent dangerous runs.
Mill Utd scored their second goal on the brink of half time, and it was a goal that could have been avoided from a Calderhill perspective. A corner kick was whipped into the six yard box from the left corner flag and the ball was glanced towards goal by Nicol. The keeper fumbled and the ball was judged to have crossed the line before it was scooped clear behind the feet of the goalkeeper. It was a crucial blow at the midway stage of the match.