Drama aplenty at Scottish Cup & Plate finals in Glasgow

Grange, Milne Craig Clydesdale Western, PSL Team Sport Clydesdale and Dundee Wanderers were the winning teams during a dramatic day’s play in the Men’s and Women’s Scottish Cup & Plate finals at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre.

Men’s Scottish Cup Final

Grange successfully defended the Men’s Scottish Cup against Edinburgh University, beating the student side 5-1 to win the trophy for the second season running.

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(Grange celebrate two Scottish Cup successes in a row. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

After a close opening exchange, Grange were dramatically awarded a penalty stroke in the 11th minute after the University defense was penalised for a foot illegally blocking on the line.

However, goalkeeper Jakim Bernsden was more than alive to Callum Milne’s attempt, diving to his right to block the flick and maintain the deadlock at 0-0.

Grange had a couple of penalty corner attempts denied by Bernsden before the first goal arrived in the 20th minute; great play from Hamish Imrie on the left touchline led to Cameron Fraser bearing down on goal, the forward flicking the ball past the outstretched Bernsden for Todd Harmsworth to dive and guide the ball into an open goal.

It was Grange who again stole the advantage early in the second half, Cameron Fraser dispatching a penalty corner effort from the edge of the circle in the 39th minute.

The match was put beyond the reach of the University in the 58th minute with Harmsworth inflicting a third goal on the students, rifiling the ball into the right hand corner at a short corner.

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(Todd Harmsworth scores from a penalty corner strike. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

Three minutes later, further salt was rubbed into the wounds of the scholars, an aerial pass reaching Frank Ryan sprinting down the left where his lovely pass conjured up an easy finish for Milne to score the fourth Grange goal and atone for his earlier penalty miss.

Harmsworth completed an excellent hat-trick in the 67th minute, collecting a short corner and crashing the ball high into the roof of the net to make it 5-0.

Nevertheless, University finally registered on the scoresheet, Jamie Wong finishing off with a sweet strike two minutes from the end.

However, it was the Stags who left Glasgow with the trophy, winning 5-1.

Women’s Scottish Cup Final

Milne Craig Clydesdale Western were the winners of the Women’s Scottish Cup Final, beating Grove Menzieshill 4-3 in an epic contest.

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(Milne Craig Clydesdale Western side that won the Women’s Scottish Cup. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

It was the Dundonians who gained the early advantage in the 13th minute, Pauline Stott making an excellent tackle deep into enemy territory to play in Ali Bell, who made no mistake from seven yards out to open the scoring at 1-0.

However, Clydesdale Western were soon back in the match, equalising with a Fiona Bruce penalty corner strike in the 18th minute to make it 1-1.

Shortly after, a long pass from Louise Carroll reached Sarah Jamieson on the left of the scoring circle, the striker turning her marker inside out to cooly stroke the ball into the far corner to give Grove Menzieshill a 2-1 lead in the 21st minute.

With the match ebbing back and forth, it was no surprise when Ali Howie brought her side back on level terms at 2-2, swivelling on the left of the scoring circle to strike the ball past Grove Menzieshill’s goalkeeper Cath Rae.

With half-time fast approaching, the Titwood outfit took the lead for the first time in the match when Millie Brown was on hand to deflect Nicki Skrastin’s shot into the net from close range to put her side 3-2 up.

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(Milne Craig Clydesdale Western’s Alex Wilson in control against Grove Menzieshill. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

Five minutes after the break, good play from Skrastin, Howie and Jennifer Eadie played in Bruce in front of goal, who steadied herself to finish past Rae and snatch her second goal of the match to give Clydesdale Western some daylight at 4-2.

Nevertheless, Linda Clement pegged back the deficit to only one goal only moments after, Carroll’s shot at the penalty corner re-bounding to the former Scotland captain to lash into the net.

Drama ensued in the last minute of the match; with Clydesdale Western passing up a golden opportunity to seal the match, Grove Menzieshill subsequently sprung a counter-attack that led to the award of a penalty stroke with only 36 seconds left on the clock.

Louise Duffy turned out to be the heroine though, saving Carroll’s penalty flick to send the cup to Titwood.

Men’s Scottish Plate Final

PSL Team Sport Clydesdale made light work of the Men’s Scottish Plate Final against Falkirk GHG, running out 7-1 winners.

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(PSL Team Sport Clydesdale win the Men’s Scottish Plate. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

Gregor Hirst broke the deadlock in the 15th minute, collecting the ball on the right hand side of the scoring circle and flashing an unstoppable drive past Falkirk’s Jamie Ballantine to give Clydesdale the lead.

In the 28th minute, Rory McCann took advantage of a self-pass opportunity to glide into the circle and cross for Michael Cockburn to have the easiest of finishes unopposed at the back post, giving Clydesdale a 2-0 lead.

Shortly after half-time, Fraser Hirst extended Clydesdale’s lead to 3-0, finishing from close range in 39th minute.

Falkirk earned themselves a lifeline in the 61st minute, Gordon Yeudall picking the ball up and playing a one-two to tap in the ball into the net and make the scoreline 3-1.

However, that only served to motivate Clydesdale into shifting up the gears with four further goals in the last few minutes.

Cockburn notched his second goal of the match, firing the ball past Ballentine in the 65th minute, before Patrick Lonergan finished from only a few yards out to make it 5-1 shortly after.

Scott Lindsay finished off a Clydesdale move down the right, again finding space right in front of goal for an easy sixth goal.

James Nairn rounded off the scoring at 7-1 right on full-time, sending the Plate the short journey across Glasgow to Titwood.

Women’s Scottish Plate Final

In the Women’s Scottish Plate Final, Dundee Wanderers comfortably defeated Edinburgh University III 9-1, including five goals from Vikki Bunce and a hat-trick for Charlotte Watson.

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(Dundee Wanderers celebrate winning the Women’s Scottish Plate. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

Bunce opened the scoring in the 13th minute, collecting a penalty corner injection and electing to advance into the scoring circle, before slamming the ball into the middle of the goal.

Bunce was in imperious form seven minutes later, cutting in from the left past two University defenders to slip the ball past goalkeeper Gabe Newell to put Wanderers 2-0 up.

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(Vikki Bunce claimed five goals against Edinburgh University III in today’s plate final. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

In the 30th minute, the Taysiders increased their lead further, Charlotte Watson controlling the ball after the initial penalty corner strike had been saved, to cooly dispatch the ball into the net to make it 3-0.

Three minutes before the interval, Bunce completed her hat-trick, this time dragging the ball low into the corner from a short corner to give her side a 4-0 advantage.

Nevertheless, University scored their first goal three minutes after the half-time break, Ali Scott breaking down the right initially, and the ball found its way to Alice MacArthur at the back post with an easy tap-in awaiting her.

Wanderers struck their fifth goal of the match in the 42nd minute, the penalty corner being played back to initial injector Watson to give her the opportunity to finish past Newell at the back post.

Watson was on hand to claim her hat-trick in the 50th minute, diverting the ball into the goal from close range to put Wanderers in a 6-1 lead.

Nine minutes from full-time, another Wanderers penalty corner led to a reverse stick effort from Bunce being deflected by Heather Elder for their seventh goal.

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(Charlotte Watson, left, and Heather Elder, right, were among the goals for Wanderers. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

With University tiring, Bunce was again their tormentor, cracking the ball into the right corner to make it 8-1 in the 66th minute.

With the clock running close to the end of the match, Bunce scored her fifth goal of the game, collecting the ball on the left, driving into the circle to shoot low past Newell to leave the final score 9-1.

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