Napier's 2nds held to a draw by resilient 3rd XI

The battle of Napier ended in an entertaining draw last week, as the 2nd and 3rd XI men's football squared up at Saughton sports complex. 

A physical 2nds side looked to have the game wrapped up after winger Paul Young fired them two goals ahead. But a spirited comeback from the 3rds ensured they came away from the BUCS 6A league game with a 2-2 draw and a deserved point.

The seconds came close after just 6 minutes when big centre forward Calum Howie used his height to glance a header towards goal, but 3rds' keeper Stephen Woods did well to tip the ball wide.

But the 3rds were in no mood to lie down, quickly getting in the face of a nervy 2nds backline. The energetic Gary Hamilton looked threatening up front, and he almost put his side one up after he found himself on the end of a brilliant Angus Matheson cross. But the 3rd’s striker could only connect with his knee, and bounce the ball wide.

As the first half went on, the 3rds seemed to be holding the advantage over their opponents, but the physical advantage was still there and Napier 2nds soon muscled their way in front.

Howie again showed his strength, powering past his marker and finding himself one on one with Woods. The 3rds captain did well to parry Howie’s shot, but he couldn’t stop Paul Young who rifled the rebound into an empty net.

Napier 3rds had one final chance to grab a goal back before half time, when they were awarded a dubious penalty for handball, but striker Jake Brown failed to fire the spot-kick on target.

The second half started with the same energy from the 3rds front partnership of Brown and Hamilton, but the 2nds' rearguard had upped their game. Greg Paterson in particular was very impressive, constantly breaking up opportunities with his no-nonsense defending.

On 66 minutes the 2nds went 2-0 up after a curious second goal from winger Paul Young. The player managed to find himself in ample space on the right flank after beating the 3rds left-back with a sudden show of pace. He then managed to float a sweet ball past the keeper and into the corner of the net, though whether it was intended as a shot or a cross remains undecided.

Despite the two-goal deficit, the 3rds grabbed a scrappy goal back four minutes later to bring themselves back into the game. A corner was quickly fired into the area, and as the ball bounced around the 5 yard box, defender Russell Muir managed to stick a leg out and poke it past keeper Pierre Gouguet.

The goal gave the 3rds the impetus to go in search of an equaliser and on 80 minutes they nearly had one. Striker Brown, who put in a stalwart performance, found himself on the end of an excellent in-swinging cross from the left, but his rifling header was quickly palmed away by Gouguet.

With just 5 minutes remaining, the 3rd’s won a free kick on the right wing. The resulting cross was swung in with speed, and Brown managed to muscle his way forward and sneak the ball in at the near post.

It was justice for Brown and the Napier 3rds, whilst the 2nd XI left the pitch frustrated at having throwing away a comfy two-goal cushion.