SHIRE 2 MONTROSE 1

It could have been an easier afternoon for Shire, but at least the result was right. Two Brian Graham goals saw off Montrose but it wasn’t nerve-free watching for the home faithful who saw their team squander chances to put them on easy street and then had to endure a Montrose equaliser.

But the determination of the team to maintain a promotion push, and an outside interest in the Third Division championship, saw them through to a victory that was much less clear-cut than it should have been given the number of chances created.

Shire made one change in personnel to the team that drew with Annan Athletic. Dean Richardson came into the starting eleven in place of Sean Anderson, but there was again disappointment for Craig Donaldson who had to make do with a place on the substitutes bench. Eddie Forrest failed to recover from his recent viral infection and was again left out of the squad.

Montrose were fresh for hitting Stenhousemuir for five. They included former Dundee and East Fife striker Craig O’Reilly, who tormented Shire last season when playing for the Bayview side. Another player familiar to home fans included by Gable Endies’ player-manager Steven Tweed was Jamie McKenzie, who is no stranger to Ochilview either.

Montrose wasted very little time in getting onto the front foot. Less than a minute in they dispossessed Jamie Stevenson and put Kevin Bradley clean through but his shot from the edge of the box was well saved by Mark Peat.

Not long after a quick free-kick from Stevenson fed Andy Rodgers and he made space for a shot which Montrose keeper Tonny Bullock had to push round the post for a corner.

The early tactic of hitting long quick balls for Graham and Rodgers wasn’t working and Montrose looked nippy in the middle of the park. But, for all that, they couldn’t do much to test Peat in the early stages. O’Reilly tried his luck from long range but his effort went wide and another shot from outside the box from McKenzie was similarly high and wide.

Shire at last put together a decent move after 16 minutes. Paul Hay played Graham in behind the defence and he squared the ball back for Rodgers to hit one from the edge of the box, and although it was powerful the shot was just wide of the target.

The home team took the lead after 22 minutes. Derek Ure made good progress down the Shire left and whipped over a cross which Michael Bolochoweckyj headed back across the face of goal for Graham to ram home from six yards.

Five minutes later Graham came within a whisker of making it 2-0 when he took a pass from Ure and looked as though he only had the keeper to beat but Montrose full-back Gordon Pope got in a saving challenge.

Montrose certainly weren’t out of things and O’Reilly was unlucky after some penalty box confusion when his shot from eight yards out looked netbound but was blocked by Stevenson.

Shire were always prepared to have a go from any distance and Rodgers tried his luck on 37 minutes from 25 yards with a volley from Hay’s pass but it went just over the bar.

The visitors made a change at half-time taking off Chris Hegarty and replacing him with Paul Stewart. Shire had the more positive beginning to the second period winning three corner kicks in the first five minutes and from the last of them Tully headed across goal for Rodgers but his shot on the turn was just over the bar.

Shire then missed two glorious opportunities to increase the lead. After 57 minutes a brilliant through ball put Graham clean through but with only Bullock to beat he aimed his effort too close to the keeper who pushed it behind for a corner.

Three minutes later they missed another great chance when the ball landed at David King’s feet from Stevenson’s corner. But despite being just yards out his effort was b locked on the line by a Montrose defender.

All that came back to haunt Shire in 65 minutes. Some clever play by Kevin Bradley down the left allowed him to send over a low cross which substitute Roddy Hunter flicked deftly past Peat for the equaliser.

But Shire were not prepared to settle for second best. Ten minutes later another Stevenson corner kick was headed goalwards by Craig Tully and although Bullock was a stunning save to keep his effort out the alert Graham was on hard to bundle the ball over the line.

There was controversy on 86 minutes when Graham was clean through again on goal and appeared to be taken down inside the penalty box by the keeper. But instead of winning the penalty which he expected the Shire striker was booked for diving.

SHIRE : Peat, Hay, Tully, King, Bolochoweckyj, Weaver, Richardson(Donaldson 77), Stevenson(Dunn 89), Graham, Ure(McKenzie 68), Rodgers.

MONTROSE : Bullock, Hegarty(Stewart 46), Pope, McKenzie(Hunter 59), Tweed, Crighton, Nicol, Davidson, O’Reilly, Bradley, Black.

REFEREE : Crawford Allan

ATTENDANCE : 401.