Troon Football Club

Recap

⚽️ Troon F.C. versus Glenafton Athletic ⚽️
Saturday 1st February 2023
PDM Buildbase WOSFL Premier Division
Portland Park, Troon
Kick-off 7.30pm

by Jay Allan

The winless league run was finally put to an end at Portland Park on Wednesday night as an outstanding performance from Troon saw them thrash opponents Glenafton Athletic in a well deserved 3-0 victory that has been a long time coming.

The home side took an early lead on the 10th minute when Kyle Gilroy received the ball in the right corner of the opponent’s halffrom his teammate Sam Jamieson. Gilroy cut the ball back to Jamieson in the box, who slotted the ball through the small gap between the keeper and his near post.

Glenafton almost equalised 23 minutes in after Jamie McKernon hit a shot from the edge of the box that was blocked by Dale Moore. McKernon got onto the rebound and fired a shot towards the bottom corner, but Dale Burgess pulled off an outstanding save and palmed it past his left post.

Jaime Gallagher secured Troon their second of the match after 30 minutes with a sublime strike from the corner of the box. Gallagher got onto the end of a blocked Mark Morrison cross andlobbed a first time shot over the keeper and into bottom left corner of the net.

Troon passed up on a golden opportunity to get themselves a third a couple of minutes later. A cross into the box from Gallagher was palmed onto the back of the Glenafton defenders’ heads by Markey and the ball fell to Josh Black a few yards out from goal. Black looked certain to score but somehow managed to hit his effort off the bar and out of play.

Glenafton would also pass up on a glorious opportunity to level in the 33rd minute. Paul Paton took the ball down the right wing unmarked and played a perfect cross into the box to Sam McKee. To everyone’s shock, McKee sclaffed his shot on the six-yard box and Burgess got down to comfortably save.

A very impressive first half for The Seasiders who were in complete control of the match and very unfortunate not to have scored more. The Afton still showed signs of promise and still very capable of causing an upset in the second half if Troon were to switch off.

HALF-TIME: TROON F.C. 2-0 GLENAFTON ATHLETIC

That did not look to be the case as Troon were quick off the mark to attack. They instantly pressed the visitors straight after kickingoff, leading to Jamieson playing a ball out to Black out on the left who darted towards goal and fired a shot straight at David Markey.

Some outstanding build up play from Gilroy, Morrison, Jamieson,and Black lead to Jamieson playing a ball into the box for Gallagher to run onto. He fired a shot towards goals from close range, only to have his effort well saved from Markey 53 minutes in.

The Glens were given a penalty on the 60th minute after a Michael Moffat cross hit the raised arm of Dale Moore, who slid in and attempted to block the cross. Scott McLean stepped up and fired his penalty low to the keepers right, but Burgess got down to pull off a brilliant save, making it his second penalty save in two games.

Troon made their first change of the match in the 69th minute as Josh Black would make way for Ben Black. They were forced into another substitute only three minutes later as Raymond Montgomerie was brought on for the injured Dale Moore.

Burgess managed to grab himself an assist after firing a goal kick up to Fulton on the left wing. Fulton strolled into the box and fired a shot that was well saved by Markley, but the rebound fell right at his feet for him to pass the ball an empty net to give Troon a 3-0 lead in the 75th minute.

A double substitution would follow a few minutes later as the injured Ewan McLevy and Kyle Gilroy would depart and be replaced by Jack Marks and Blair Richardson, making his first for the club since joining on loan from East Kilbride.

Troon found themselves under pressure 78 minutes in after Logan Smith dived face first into the ground to head the ball out the box and away from danger. Dylan O’Kane picked up the ball on the left wing, crossing into the box and forcing the Troon defence to throw themselves in front of efforts from Moffat and Calvin Kemp to keep a clean sheet.

The game would finish with some drama after Assistant Manager Dean Keenan hoofed the ball away from the Glenafton player as he went to collect the ball for a quick throw in. Keenan’s action caused an uproar amongst the opposition fans and players which resulted in him being booked and receiving plenty of abuse.

The referee blew the full-time whistle, securing Troon a much needed 3-0 victory. The Seasiders fully deserved their victory, and it was all thanks to some outstanding finishing up the top end of the pitch and some sublime defending and goalkeeping down the other.

This stunning victory has taken The Seasiders up to 12th place in the league, now above Kirkintilloch Rob Roy and bringing them closer to the rest of the mid table teams. A massive game on Saturday away to Cumnock Juniors where Troon will hope to kick on from this performance and fight their way back up the league table.

Match highlights, courtesy of the club’s official Media Partner, Memories by Movie.

To read the match preview, follow the link:
https://troonfootballclub.co.uk/glenafton-010223-preview/

⚽️ Cumnock versus Troon F.C. ⚽️
Saturday 4th February 2023
South Region Challenge Cup, 3rd Round
Townhead Park, Cumnock
Kick-off 2pm