Rossvale victorious against Condorrat in Scottish Cup First Round

Rossvale started their U14 Scottish Cup campaign with an emphatic statement as they defeated Condorrat FC 9-2 in the first round at their home, Milton Sports Centre.

The hosts got off to a flyer when straight from kick-off Rossvale directed the play down the right wing, where Oliver Conlin found space and fired the ball into the bottom left corner, clipping the inside of the post on its way in, giving the Condorrat goalkeeper no chance.

Conlin would double his tally in the 20th minute with an almost identical effort. Dribbling down the right-hand side once again he found the bottom left corner again to make the score 2-0.

Mason Whitelaw would make it 3-0 to Rossvale just minutes late. He found himself bearing down on the Condorrat net with acres of space after the Condorrat defence thought they had successfully played him offside. Whitelaw composed himself and struck past the keeper to increase his side’s advantage.

Conlin completed his hat-trick on the half-hour mark when he crept in at the back post to get on the end of Taylor Hendry’s low cross to get the vital touch to round off a well-worked Rossvale move. Hendry then got a goal of his own when he calmly rounded the goalkeeper and tapped the ball into an empty net.

Whitelaw grabbed his second of the match when he got himself onto the end of a free kick swung in from the left-hand side and Rossvale entered the half-time interval with a good lead.

Condorrat started the second half off more aggressively before winning a free kick in the final third. Oscar Ballantyne stepped up to take it, and it sailed into the top right corner of the net to pull one back for the visitors.

Rossvale quickly restored their advantage as Whitelaw became the provider when he cut the ball back towards the penalty spot for Adam Bradley to tuck under the diving goalkeeper into the bottom right corner.

Ballantyne doubled his goal tally though, as he proved himself to be a dead-ball specialist. He curled a cracker of a free-kick into the top left corner to pull another back for his side and add to his highlight reel of free-kick goals.

Aaron Howe got his name on the scoresheet for Rossvale to put his side further ahead. Caleb Barrons picked the ball up out wide after it flew over everyone from a corner, and perfectly picked out Howe who set himself up with one touch, before firing a rocket low into the net from outside the area.

Rossvale would add another moments later, following a stramash in the penalty area that saw the ball fall to Aaron McDonald who tapped it home from close range. Just before the full-time whistle blew, there was enough time for Hendry and Whitelaw to net their hat-tricks, thanks to Barrons who earned himself a hat-trick of assists in the process.

Rossvale will now advance to the next round of the Scottish Cup following their resounding win over a strong Condorrat side. Condorrat showed what they were capable of throughout the match, with great combination play at times to trouble the defence, as well as their own goalkeeper making several great saves when called upon. However, a lot of teams would have struggled to contain Rossvale provided the form they are on and the talent of their squad as they hope this first-round performance acts as the benchmark for the level of performance, they expect from themselves in the rest of the competition.

Rossvale Player of the Match:

The Rossvale player of the match could have gone to a number of players, especially considering there were three hat-tricks scored amongst the squad. However, the award goes to Barrons due to the selflessness that he showed throughout the game. Despite his side being comfortably ahead and Barrons having opportunities to test the goalkeeper, his priority was always finding his teammates to help get into the next round.

Condorrat SA Player of the Match: Oscar Ballantyne.

Condorrat’s player of the match award goes to Oscar Ballantyne. Ballantyne netted both goals scored by his side, and both were scored in spectacular fashion from a set piece. Aside from his goals, Ballantyne’s work rate was tremendous, and he proved a tough customer to deal with in the middle of the park for his Rossvale counterparts.