Bonnyrigg Rose 'deserved replay and should have been awarded penalty' as Scottish Cup run ended by Clyde

Ally Love scores Clyde's late winner against Bonnyrigg Rose. Pic: Scott Louden

Bonnyrigg Rose captain Jonny Stewart claimed the least his side deserved was a Scottish Cup fourth-round replay with Clyde after the visitors netted a late winner to prevail 1-0.

The Lowland League men were the better side for most of the 90 minutes, but would rue a host of missed chances as substitute Ally Love struck in the final ten minutes to prevent Bonnyrigg from making history and put the League One side through.

Stewart, in his seventh season at New Dundas Park, believes it shows how far the club has come that they were left so gutted they weren’t in the hat for the last 16 for the first time.

“I felt over the course of the 90 minutes there wasn’t much in it at all and, if anything, we maybe edged it,” said Stewart after Saturday's tie. “We probably had the better of the chances; I can’t really remember big Mark [Weir] having too many saves to make whereas their goalie had a few decent saves. To not get a replay at least is very disappointing.

“Beating Montrose in the last round and competing against Clyde on Saturday shows we can compete with teams from a higher level. That’s two teams two leagues above us that we have more than held our own against, so it shows how far we have come as a club and a team that the boys in the changing room were absolutely gutted. We felt we should have got something out the game, at least a replay, if not, to go through to the next round.”

Striker Keiran McGachie should have headed in the opener after two minutes from Neil Martynuik’s cross, but sent his attempt over the bar from close range. Scott Gray then flashed an effort just wide as Rose ramped up the pressure, before Lee Currie shot over the bar after a good move involving George Hunter and Johnathan Brown.

Clyde talisman David Goodwillie’s acrobatic attempt was halted by Rose centre-back Ewan Moyes just before the break. Moyes then looked certain to break the deadlock with his goal-bound header on the hour, only for Bully Wee keeper David Mitchell to push clear.

Bonnyrigg began to tire late in the game and that's when Clyde eventually started to look the higher-placed team. The deadlock was broken in 80 minutes as Love showed composure to flick the ball through Dean Brett’s legs following a goalmouth scramble before firing in off the post past Weir.

The hosts claimed for a penalty when the ball appeared to strike the arm of Scott Rumsby, but referee Peter Stuart claimed it wasn’t deliberate. Currie then had Rose’s best chance to equalise when his near post attempt was cleared by the legs of Mitchell.

Rose boss Robbie Horn reckoned they should have been awarded that late penalty. “I felt we created more chances," he said. "I can’t ask any more from the players in what they have done in this Scottish Cup run. It was a handball and the referee said it was handball but not deliberate, and when that happens there is not much you can do. There was maybe one in the first half as well, but sometimes you get them sometimes you don’t. The timing of the game when emotions were high makes everyone think it was a stonewall penalty.”

Bonnyrigg Rose: Weir, Brett, Brown, Moyes, Horne, Stewart, McGachie, Currie, Martyniuk (Docherty), Hunter (Turner), S.Gray (R.Gray).

Clyde: Mitchell, Lang, McNiff, Howie (Wallace), Rumsby, Grant, Smith, Cuddhy, Goodwillie, Lamont, Wylde (Love).