Arthur McKay Scottish Cup Finals Preview – Grove Menzieshill

Grove Menzieshill will make their first appearance in the Men’s Arthur McKay Scottish Cup Final for the first time for 12 years this weekend and their task is a tall order; trying to stop the Kelburne juggernaut in full flow as it seemingly careers towards another domestic honour.
The Dundonians last tasted Scottish Cup success in 1989, winning the trophy against Gordonians and their last appearance in the final itself was in 2001 against Dundee Wanderers.
For Scotland international and Grove Menzieshill star Gavin Byers, the challenge is clear but his side are not daunted by the prospect of taking on the Division 1 champions and current cup holders.
“We’re going to go out and give it a good go”, said Byers. “We’ve played them twice this year, losing twice unfortunately, but I think we’ve learnt a lot from those games, taking notes and exercises into training sessions so we can hopefully beat them this time around.
“Training has been going well with the boys; we’ve had a bit of a lay-off in terms of games since the league season finished but that hasn’t stopped us training. We’ve had a few scratch matches and the boys are doing well. Spirits are high and we’re in good preparations for the big game.”
The Taysiders were in the running for the Aberdeen Asset Management National League Division 1 title right the way until the end of the season so they will pose the Paisley side problems in Saturday’s encounter, particularly the threat from penalty corners.
Chris Anderson’s side have also displayed an impressive run to the cup final, defeating league rivals Hillhead and Inverleith, whilst also beating city adversaries Dundee Wanderers and second division side Falkirk GHG.
And on the day, it comes down to seventy minutes and who wants it the most, as Byers was keen to point out, “It’s a cup final, anything can happen on the day. We may have lost the two games [to Kelburne] but the scoreline didn’t reflect the performance in both games. We’ll be looking to put them under a bit of pressure.
“In a neutral venue, on a big day, with a big support, anything can happen. We’ve got a lot of supporters coming through so we should take a lot of heart from that and give it a good go.
“It would mean so much to the club [to win the Scottish Cup]. I think the last time the men’s team won the cup was 1989 so it’s been a long time. We’ve had a lot of success indoor, but not so much outdoor, so we’re aiming to add the Scottish Cup to the indoor title we won this season.
Grove Menzieshill
Andrew Ross, Gavin Tomlinson, Alex Lihou, Sam Tilston, Jamie Carnegie, Ross McPherson, Michael Ross, Ross Stott, Gavin Byers, Paul Martin, Craig Falconer, Oliver James, Alastair Irvine, Stewart Bracegirdle, Andrew Suttie, Ben Cromar
Road to the Final:
Last 32: Grove Menzieshill 3-0 AMN Hillhead
Last 16: Falkirk GHG 1-5 Grove Menzieshill
QF: Dundee Wanderers 2-3 Grove Menzieshill
SF: Inverleith 0-3 Grove Menzieshill

Grove Menzieshill will make their first appearance in the Men’s Arthur McKay Scottish Cup Final for several years this weekend and their task is a tall order; trying to stop the Kelburne juggernaut in full flow as it seemingly careers towards another domestic honour.

The Dundonians last tasted Scottish Cup success in 1989, winning the trophy against Gordonians.

For Scotland international and Grove Menzieshill star Gavin Byers, the challenge is clear but his side is not daunted by the prospect of taking on the Division 1 champions and current cup holders.

ByersGavin

“We’re going to go out and give it a good go”, said Byers. “We’ve played them twice this year, losing twice unfortunately, but I think we’ve learnt a lot from those games, taking notes and exercises into training sessions so we can hopefully beat them this time around.

“Training has been going well with the boys; we’ve had a bit of a lay-off in terms of games since the league season finished but that hasn’t stopped us training. We’ve had a few scratch matches and the boys are doing well. Spirits are high and we’ve had good preparations for the big game.”

The Taysiders were in the running for the Aberdeen Asset Management National League Division 1 title right the way until the end of the season so they will pose the Paisley side problems in Saturday’s encounter, particularly the threat from penalty corners.

Chris Anderson’s side have also displayed an impressive run to the cup final, defeating league rivals Hillhead and Inverleith, whilst also beating city adversaries Dundee Wanderers and second division side Falkirk GHG.

And on the day, it comes down to seventy minutes and who wants it the most, as Byers was keen to point out, “It’s a cup final, anything can happen on the day. We may have lost the two games [to Kelburne] but the scoreline didn’t reflect the performance in both games. We’ll be looking to put them under a bit of pressure.

“In a neutral venue, on a big day, with a big support, anything can happen. We’ve got a lot of supporters coming through so we should take a lot of heart from that and give it a good go.

“It would mean so much to the club [to win the Scottish Cup]. I think the last time the men’s team won the cup was 1989 so it’s been a long time. We’ve had a lot of success indoor, but not so much outdoor, so we’re aiming to add the Scottish Cup to the indoor title we won this season.”

Grove Menzieshill

Andrew Ross, Gavin Tomlinson, Alex Lihou, Sam Tilston, Jamie Carnegie, Ross McPherson, Michael Ross, Ross Stott, Gavin Byers, Paul Martin, Craig Falconer, Oliver James, Alastair Irvine, Stewart Bracegirdle, Andrew Suttie, Ben Cromar (probable line-up).

Road to the Final:

Last 32: Grove Menzieshill 3-0 AMN Hillhead

Last 16: Falkirk GHG 1-5 Grove Menzieshill

QF: Dundee Wanderers 2-3 Grove Menzieshill

SF: Inverleith 0-3 Grove Menzieshill

 

 

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