Penalty shoot-out victory takes Bonnyrigg to semis

Bonnyrigg ROSE reached the semi-finals of the Fife and Lothians Cup with a 3-2 penalties win over Bo’ness after the clubs had drawn a blank in regulation time.

For Bonnyrigg manager Max Christie was a nail-biting affair. He said: “Bo’ness were the better side over 90 minutes, so I have to be delighted. We were down to the bare bones with only 11 fit players and the subs carrying knocks, so this was a big result.

“We had big characters out there, who never gave up and defended superbly. Steven Bunyan hasn’t played all season but came in and did a terrific job.”

Bo’ness boss Paul Ronald said: “The players gave us a great performance without getting the result we wanted. I can’t put my finger on what’s going wrong because the players are giving everything.”

The game was fairly even in the opening 45 minutes but Bo’ness had the best chances. Chris Donnelly smashed a shot against the bar and almost did the same in the second half. In the shoot-out, the goalkeepers saved one penalty each, with Donnelly and Watt scoring for the visitors and McCallum, Hendrie and Stevie Thomson on target for the Rose. Darren Gribben crashed one off the bar for Bo’ness, giving victory to the Midlothian side.

In the South Division, Falkirk recorded a 3–0 win at home to Harthill moving them to within two points of leaders Dalkeith with the same number of games played. Whitburn beat Pumpherston 2-1 while West Calder and Blackburn drew 2-2.