EAST Stirlingshire striker Colin Cramb lamented the moment he threw away his side's chance to alter the course of the Scottish Cup fourth round tie with Dundee United at Ochilview. Presented with a one-on-one situation with United goalkeeper Lukasz Zaluska in just the fourth minute, Cramb appeared to hesitate before chipping the ball harmlessly over.
It was clear he was unsure about whether he was offside or not, but the linesman's flag stayed down and a striker of his experience should know that the best course of action is to put the ball into the net, and ask questions later. Instead, he made
a rather half-hearted attempt to score, and was the one facing the questions afterwards.
"I heard a whistle," he said, not entirely convincingly. "I'd have taken it in and tried to score otherwise. It was more a kick-the-ball-away than anything else. It was a half-effort. It's just one of those things. But I should have made sure first."
Cramb conceded that United were better "in every department" and even had he scored it is impossible to imagine a different outcome to yesterday's emphatic win for the visitors.
Debutant Johnny Russell was United's top man, and he scored his first goal for the club in the second-half. Craig Levein recently recalled the player from a loan spell with Forfar Athletic, but did not rule out the possibility of Russell continuing his education on loan at Forfar, or elsewhere, in the months ahead.
Shire enjoyed a brief period of dominance after United went ahead through Prince Buaben but lost two quick goals before half-time. Debutant goalkeeper Jamie Newman saved them in the second half, when United scored only once more.
"United are probably the top team in Scotland at the minute," pointed out Shire manager Jim McInally. At half time he told his players to go out and make sure they "don't get turned over" and this they achieved.
"I am delighted for the young goalkeeper," said McInally. "It could have been a difficult day for him there. But he is able to take something very positive from the game."
McInally, who won the Scottish Cup with Dundee United in 1994, was hailed by the away fans during the game, but he found the occasion a difficult experience. "I would love to have put all four subs on but I couldn't, and I felt bad about that," he said. "It's the players' day, not my day. I even found it hard picking the team. I don't like disappointing people."
McInally returns to league action with Shire this weekend, against Forfar. United, meanwhile, have earned a fifth round cup tie at Hamilton Accies next month, a prospect not exactly relished by Levein. "A Premier League team away from home is the toughest draw you can get at this stage," he said, with United having been beaten 3-1 at Hamilton at the start of the season. The sides also contested a bad-tempered 1-1 draw at Tannadice late last year.
The full article contains 520 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
