Milngavie Wanderers 1
Doune Castle 4

A Sean Wilbert hat-trick was the highlight of an impressive Castle win. After completely dominating the first half, Doune had to withstand a second-half fight back from Milngavie before sealing the win with a late goal.

Attacking up the Staney Brig slope, Doune started brightly. With Calum Scott, Lukasz Duszynski, Jack Wardrope and Gavin Campbell linking well on the right, time after time, Doune shredded the home defence and could easily have been several goals ahead within the first 10 minutes.

Calum Scott, in particular, ran the Milngavie rearguard ragged with his searing pace and tight control. Twice Scott was denied by the Milngavie keeper and, along with Gavin Campbell, repeatedly threaded inviting balls across the face of goal.

It was no surprise when Doune finally made it 1-0 after 21 minutes.

Don Morrison took possession just beyond the half-way line. He curled an inch-perfect cross behind the defence to Sean Wilbert, who had taken up a good position left of centre of the goal. From 14 yards, Wilbert did well to generate sufficient power in his controlled header to angle the ball high over the keeper and into the top corner.

Milngavie were dangerous on the counter-attack. After 27 minutes, Allan Pacitti made a fine stop to deny a home forward who had broken clear. Pacitti dived low to parry the strike from just outside the area.

Doune extended their lead on 31 minutes.

A corner from the right was cleared to the edge of the box. Andrew Gibson rifled a first-time volley that deflected off Lukasz Duszynski and straight to Sean Wilbert. Wilbert controlled the ball before lashing it home from 12 yards with an emphatic finish.

Milngavie were stung into retaliation and Allan Pacitti made another fine stop after 38 minutes. Pacitti dived to his right to gather a low drive from 23 yards after a break through the middle.

Doune played some wonderful attacking football in that first half as their crisp inter-play saw them break clear repeatedly. 5 minutes before the break, David Innes led a mazy attack down the left flank and was unlucky when his raking drive flew inches over.

Milngavie finished the half with a late flurry, but found Allan Pacitti an impenetrable barrier. They had to rely on shots from distance. However, Pacitti’s positioning and clean handling made a couple of difficult saves look routine.

A fine opening period saw Doune with a 2-0 half-time lead.

Doune started the second half with more scintillating attacking football. With Jack Wardrope, Lukasz Duszynski and Andrew Gibson dominating possession in the middle, Milngavie were fortunate not to fall further behind.

Milngavie had also started the second half well, with their play more purposeful than in the first. They enjoyed a 15-minute spell when they had better of the play. Allan Pacitti remained secure and the Castle backline of Don Morrison, Tam Nelson and Dean Manson restricted the number of clear opportunities the home side generated.

Doune made it 3-0 after 64 minutes.

Fine play down the right saw the ball played into the box where Jack Steven took possession on the right. Steven played the ball inside to Sean Wilbert with a defence-splitting pass. Wilbert completed his hat-trick by rifling the ball wide of the keeper.

To their credit, Milngavie refused to capitulate and they dragged themselves back into the game after 68 minutes. They took advantage of Doune’s failure to clear their lines and netted with a close-range finish for 3-1.
The goal rejuvenated the home side and they attacked with greater self-belief and purpose. For the first time in the game, the Doune defence looked vulnerable.

After 72 minutes, Don Morrison misjudged a sliding challenge as a Milngavie forward threatened to break clear down the wing. A red card inevitably followed as the Castle were then forced to re-organise their ranks.

Doune regained their composure on the ball and again started to create opportunities. Lukasz Duszynski skewed his shot just wide of the far post after fine wing play on the left.

Danny MacLaren sealed the win with his first Castle goal after 78 minutes.

Doune carved open the Milngavie defence down their left flank. Jack Steven timed his pass inside to Danny MacLaren to perfection. The timing and weight of the pass allowed MacLaren to control the ball before placing it into the net with an assured finish for 4-1.

10-man Doune then managed the game’s closing stages assuredly, with all of the substitutes playing their part impressively. The 4-1 final scoreline was no more than Doune deserved after a fine performance, especially in that dominant opening 45 minutes.

Doune Castle: Pacitti, Campbell (Paterson), Morrison, Manson, Nelson, D Innes (MacLaren), Wardrope (Cramb), Gibson (Steven), Duszynski, Scott, Wilbert (Brown)

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