Dalkeith line up big guns after slaying Broxburn

Dalkeiths Paul Tansey scores his teams second goal. Picture: Neil Hanna

The Premier League outfit were entirely deserving of their 4-0 rout against their esteemed opponents, who were without several of their first team regulars, and their reward is a last-eight clash at home to big guns Bo’ness United or Linlithgow Rose.

An own goal had the home side ahead at the break, and Tansey doubled their lead to put them in control. Former Kelty Hearts striker Craig O’Reilly then notched a double as the visitors crumbled.

“We’d been creating loads of chances the last few weeks and just not putting them away, but today everything we created seem to go in the goal,” said Tansey.

“We just need to show the same 100 per cent again in the next round and we’ll see how we get on. Everybody is looking forward to whoever we get, but if we play like we did today for 90 minutes, I don’t see why we can’t come away with the exact same result.”

Dalkeith are packed full of players with Super League experience and boss Kevin Haynes reckons they are a top-flight side in all but name. Their chances of promotion from the second tier this season are slim, however.

Haynes said: “Being a league above us doesn’t mean much because I think we’re a Super League team, or we’ve got the potential to be a Super League team anyway.

“We’ve let ourselves slip since the turn of the year to get a position to get into the Super League but we’ve definitely got the facilities and the players – the whole club in general.”

Tansey demonstrated the Jags’ intent when his fierce effort flashed just wide of Gary Maley’s right-hand upright after five minutes, and then visiting striker Kieran Anderson sent an effort wide from the edge of the area.

The home side were harrying Broxburn all over the park. They got their reward before the break as defender Craig Purves inadvertently slid the ball past Maley when attempting to block Michael Hunter’s cut back, the ball tricking over the line just inside the post.

Connor Spowart had displayed flashes of his talent in the opening period, but the youngster left the Broxburn defence trailing as he sauntered through and supplying Tansey who rocketed an effort past Maley from the edge of the box.

The goal deflated Broxburn and Maley was left picking the ball out of his net once more just two minutes later. Scott McNaughton provided the assist, his corner laid on a plate for big striker O’Reilly who headed home.

Right-back Robbie Manson then picked up a second yellow card for dissent, with any hope of a Broxburn comeback all but ended.

O’Reilly put that unlikely scenario to bed after 69 minutes as he latched on to Tansey’s pinpoint crossfield ball which sent him through one-on-one and he dispatched clinically past Maley.

Broxburn should have grabbed a consolation late on when Scott Richards fed Anderson, but he hit his effort straight at keeper David Hay.

Visiting boss Max Christie bemoaned their lack of numbers, but felt Dalkeith were thoroughly deserving of their victory.

He said: “We never had a team – we had no subs and three 19-year-olds on the park. We had too may out and we can’t cope with that level of absences.

“It was always going to be tough for us. They thoroughly deserved it, they were stronger all over the park.”

Dalkeith Thistle: Hay, Kidd, McKenzie, Linton, Gavin, Whitson, Spowart, Hunter (Lally), O’Reilly, Tansey, McNaughton

Broxburn Athleitc: Maley, Manson, Millar, Willems, Purves, Scott, Rarity, Longridge, Nimmo, Richards, Young