Lowland League: Stuart McNicholas hailed for Edinburgh Uni | Whitehill lose again

Edinburgh University assistant manager Dave McMillan reserved praise for fourth-year student Stuart McNicholas after he earned his side a share of the spoils against Gala Fairydean Rovers in the Borders.

Stuart McNicholas

Returning from a two-month absence, the frontman struck an equaliser just before the interval to cancel out Ruari Paton’s early opener at Netherdale and halt their run of back-to-back defeats.

McMillan felt it was crucial they stopped the rot before facing title contenders Kelty Hearts in a fortnight’s time.

“I think a draw was probably a fair result in the end and it was important for the players, particularly because we’ve got Kelty in our next game,” stated McMillan.

“BSC were miles ahead of us a few weeks ago, but last week against Dalbeattie was really disappointing because I felt we did enough to win the game and losing a goal in the final minute was a blow.

“It’s worth giving a particular mention to Stuart because this was his first start in about seven or eight weeks and he’s been very patient.

“He’s been a bit unlucky as he dropped out the team just before we went on our five-match unbeaten run and that meant it was difficult for him to get back into the side.

“He’s trained very well and has shown a great attitude, so it was great to see him score and get a full 90 minutes under his belt.”

Elsewhere, bottom side Whitehill Welfare went down fighting 3-1 against league leaders East Kilbride at K-Park.

Ian Little’s side were facing an uphill battle after going 2-0 down inside 20 minutes through goals from Anton Brady and Greame Holmes.

Paul Woods’ header seemingly put the game beyond doubt after 23 minutes, but the Rosewell outfit pulled on back through Fabio Neto just before the interval.

Spartans’ trip to Dalbeattie and Civil Service Strollers’ home clash with Kelty were postponed due to frozen pitches.