Scintillating performances from debutant Joe Cranston and midfield maestros Tam Whittaker and Derek Ure helped inspire Giffnock to a huge victory over league rivals Strathaven.

The Over 40s league campaign saw Giffnock sc 40s welcome Strathaven Dynamo 40s to Eastwood as both sides battled for three valuable league points.

Giffnock SC knew they had to respond with a big result today after suffering a shock defeat to Kilbowie 40s in their previous fixture two weeks ago

MATCH REPORT

Conditions were perfect and the home side were hoping the return of Derek Ure, along with the league debuts of Hugh Hill, Gordon Haig, Joe Cranston and Tahir Bhatti, would provide the spark needed to get back to winning ways.

With a defensive crisis affecting the squad, the Giffnock management team made the bold decision to deploy midfielder Tam Whittaker at centre-back.

The home side started brightly and enjoyed long spells of possession deep inside the Strathaven Dynamo 40s half.

The first clear cut opportunity fell to GSC debutant Hugh Hill at the back post as a corner kick was missed by the defender, but the usually clinical striker fired wide of the post.

Against the run of play, the visitors took the lead after being awarded what looked to be a soft penalty. The Strathaven attacker confidently dispatched the spot-kick to put his side ahead. 0-1 Strathaven

Giffnock immediately looked for a response and a powerful strike from Bhatti forced the goalkeeper into an excellent save.

Bhatti then came even closer when his header from a dangerous Gordon Haig corner kick drifted inches wide of the post.

GSC 40s thought they had equalised when Joe Cranston found the net, but the referee ruled out the goal and awarded a free-kick instead.

Nicky Taylor was then heavily involved, producing a delicious through ball for Haigy, who shrugged off his defender only to see his effort brilliantly saved by the commanding opposition keeper.

Cranston continued to drive the team forward and played a huge role in the equaliser. His powerful run and perfectly weighted pass allowed fellow debutant Hugh Hill to finish from close range to level the scores. 1-1 !!!!!!

Almost straight from the restart Giffnock SC 40s struck again. Great link-up play between Hugh Hill and Derek Ure saw Ure force another top save before Joe Cranston reacted quickest to tap home the rebound and put his side ahead. 2-1 Giffnock !!!!

Haigy was causing the Strathaven defence constant problems and some excellent midfield play from Cranston and Ure released the striker, whose effort flashed inches past the post.

The new striker Gordon Haig then turned provider, bursting to the by-line before cutting the ball back, only for Hugh Hill to see his effort well saved.

Speedster Haigy was desperate to open his account and, after another superb through ball from Ure, raced clear only to be denied once again by the outstanding Strathaven Dynamo goalkeeper.

Nicky Taylor remained at the heart of everything, linking play with a series of tidy passes before releasing Bhatti, whose effort was again kept out by the inspired visiting keeper.

Despite Giffnock’s dominance, Strathaven found an equaliser. Stephen Murray’s deep cross caused chaos inside the penalty area and the loose ball was headed home from close range. 2-2 !!!!!

Midfield maestro Joe Cranston was stamping his authority all over the match. Another wonderful pass released Haigy, who cut inside before firing narrowly over the crossbar.

The Giffnock midfield continued to dominate and Cranston once again produced a delightful ball over the top, only for the Strathaven goalkeeper to preserve parity with a magnificent point-blank save from Bhatti.

Haigy delivered another dangerous corner kick, this time finding Nicky Taylor, whose close-range header drifted wide and left the attacker kicking himself at passing up another good chance.

Giffnock certainly did not deserve to go into the interval level. More incisive football from Cranston and Ure allowed the latter to send full-back Chris Bruff racing through on goal, and the “Purple Cafu” produced a composed finish to restore the lead. 3-2 Giffnock !!!!!

Although Giffnock led at half-time, the scoreline hardly reflected the home side’s first-half dominance and the half time message would be clear, Be more Clinical in front of goal.

Half-Time – Giffnock Soccer Centre 40s 3-2 Strathaven Dynamo 40s

The second half began with Willie Stewart replacing Tahir Bhatti after an impressive first-half performance.

The opening stages were fairly quiet, with both teams taking too long in possession and neither creating clear-cut opportunities.

Giffnock had a glorious chance to go further in front in the opening stages of the second half when Whittaker found Haig, The speedy attacker beat the offside trap and fired wide of the post when he had more time to find the finish.

Strathaven came close from a corner when the ball bounced around the six-yard box before the final effort found only the side-netting.

Willie Stewart was next to test the goalkeeper, his long-range strike comfortably gathered by the Strathaven number one.

The visitors then produced another dangerous attack when a delicate chipped pass found Wilson, but the GSC 40s number one Murray Husband raced from his line to make an excellent save.

After some lovely football involving Stewart, Cranston and Ure, the ball found Nicky Taylor. His intelligent pass released Haigy, who calmly finished to give Giffnock some breathing space. 4-2 !!!!!!!

Giffnock introduced Scott, McKinney and McFeteridge to inject fresh energy and put the game beyond their opponents.

Credit must go to Tam Whittaker and captain John Healy, who were absolutely rock solid at the back and gave their side the perfect platform to build attacks. Whittaker, in particular, looked as though he had played centre-back his entire career.

The fifth goal arrived following another flowing move. Chris Bruff started the attack before finding Ure, who released McFeteridge. His exquisite cross was met perfectly by fellow substitute McKinney, who finished confidently. 5-2 !!!!!

Strathaven pushed more men forward in search of a way back into the match, but once again they found Whittaker and Healy in inspired form.

Giffnock were producing some superb football and another dangerous attack saw Stewart find Haig, whose cut-back was met by Cranston. His effort crashed back off the crossbar with the goalkeeper beaten.

The visitors were awarded a second penalty after a trailing leg appeared to catch the Strathaven attacker’s ankle. The penalty taker made no mistake, blasting the ball into the net 5-3 !!!!

The Architect Joe Cranston was once again at the heart of the action, producing another excellent through ball for fox in the box Hugh Hill who attempted an audacious chip over the goalkeeper but watched the effort land on the roof of the net. Had it dipped a fraction earlier, the keeper was beaten.

Chris Bruff almost grabbed his second goal of the afternoon after finding space at the back post. His superb first touch set him up perfectly before his strike cannoned off the crossbar and bounced clear.

The final attack of the match again involved the marauding Chris Bruff, who exchanged a series of one-twos before bursting through on goal. Just as he prepared to shoot one-on-one with the goalkeeper, the assistant’s flag went up for offside. (A highly debatable decision)

Moments later, the referee brought proceedings to an end and the Giffnock Soccer Centre 40s players celebrated an outstanding return to winning ways.

Full-Time – Giffnock Soccer Centre 40s 5-3 Strathaven Dynamo 40s

MEN OF THE MATCH

Choosing a Man of the Match was always going to be difficult after such an excellent team performance. However, Joe Cranston, Tam Whittaker and Derek Ure all produced outstanding displays and stamped their authority on the contest from start to finish.

On a day when Giffnock desperately needed their senior players to lead from the front, these three leaders delivered top-tier performances, inspiring the team to one of their best victories of the season against a team that had only lost one of their opening seven games.

We now rest up for the next week and get ourselves ready to play Kilsyth 40s a week on Sunday.