Crossgates Primrose end losing East of Scotland League run

CROSSGATES PRIMROSE ended a run of four successive defeats against Penicuik Athletic with a performance their manager reckoned was a lot more like them.

Alan Campbell's side found some home comforts in their first game at Humbug Park since September against their Midlothian opponents, picking up just a second point in six games.

Cammy Muirhead put Crossgates ahead 11 minutes into the second half, rounding the goalkeeper and slotting home after being played in behind the visiting defence, but Ben Wardlaw ensured the points were shared after he bundled in a close-range 68th minute leveller.

Cammy Muirhead's goal gave Crossgates the lead on Saturday. (Image: David Wardle.)

Primrose, in 13th, are one place and three points above the drop zone, having taken 12 from 15 games, which Campbell admitted "isn't good enough".

However, he said: "We'll take a bit of confidence from Saturday.

"Saturday was much more like us. The conditions with the wind were tough; we were pushing into a really punishing wind in the first half. We struggled to get out of our half when we played forward.

"The park was heavy, and they had most of the play, but we had a glaring chance after two minutes, and Ross (Philp, who recently joined the club from East Fife) had one cleared off the line.

"In the second half, we came into our own. We scored a really good goal, and had a couple of half chances to get a second goal. It was one of those days where, if we got a second goal, I couldn't see them coming back into it.

"But they got a soft goal, and it was a topsy-turvy game in the second half. It felt like two points dropped when we came in after the game.

"I'm disappointed we couldn't get a second goal, or hold out for a clean sheet. I thought we shaded it over the 90 minutes but, to be fair to Penicuik, they'll probably feel they deserved something from the game.

"We had 11 guys on the park who were fighting hard, worked hard, and performed well."

Kinnoull 0 Inverkeithing Hillfield Swifts 2, East of Scotland League, Premier Division

SWIFTS boss Jason McCrindle said the credit for his second win in charge should go to his players after a fine success at Kinnoull.

Following their victory over Penicuik Athletic seven days previously - the first competitive game in the dugout for McCrindle - Inverkeithing struck twice in the second half to pick up a fifth Premier Division win of the season.

Ben Ramage put them ahead with 17 minutes left before Liam Kelly wrapped up the points with five remaining.

Swifts are now eight points clear of the relegation places, and McCrindle said: "I can't fault the guys. It was really good and I'm really happy. We thoroughly deserved it.

"There was a lot of good stuff in the first half, but Kinnoull have lost a lot of goals, so the message (at half-time) to the players was to do what we're good at. The 70 per cent possession we had in the second half shows how dominant we were. The goals we scored were excellent.

"In the second half, we grew in confidence and strung the ball about. The guys have the confidence to go and play, so hopefully we can build momentum."

A second successive 2-0 win also meant another clean sheet, and the Swifts boss added: "If you're not conceding goals, you'll not lose games, and I think we've always got the quality to go and get a win. That's always been the message from the start, to be positive.

"All the credit has to go to the players. We just try to give them confidence and belief."

Oakley United 2 Leith Athletic 2, East of Scotland League, First Division

OAKLEY UNITED returned to action for the first time in more than a month on Saturday but had to settle for a point after twice taking the lead.

Peter Goldie's side hadn't played for five weeks - since a 1-1 draw with Whitehill Welfare on November 11 - and shared the spoils again with Leith Athletic.

The capital club are immediately above Oakley in the table, with the two teams occupying second and third bottom positions respectively in the First Division, and it was the hosts who found broke the deadlock.

Midway through the first half, Brandon Callaghan put Goldie's outfit ahead, only for Leith to pull level seven minutes later.

Tommy Simpson, however, restored the Blairwood Park hosts' advantage shortly afterwards, but a second equaliser 14 minutes from time ensured that the game finished level.

Oakley have six points, and are as many behind Leith, from their 12 games played, which is three fewer than their opponents.

Vale of Leithen 0 Rosyth 2, East of Scotland League, First Division

TWO goals inside the final five minutes secured three First Division points for Rosyth at Vale of Leithen.

Stevie Crawford's side travelled to Innerleithen looking to bounce back from a 5-1 home loss to Dunipace, and did so thanks to a late double.

Jason Penman saw a first half penalty saved by home keeper, Chris Malcolm, after Dean Burgess struck the Rosyth bar, but the game remained goalless as the clock ticked towards the 90 minute mark.

However, with three minutes left, the visitors took the lead thanks to under-20s player Lennon Mowat's first goal for the senior team, before Darren Ormiston's strike made the game safe moments later.

Rosyth head into the Christmas period sixth in the table, with 22 points from 15 matches played.

There are no fixtures this weekend, but Rosyth host Oakley United on Friday December 29 in a 7.30pm kick off.

The following day (December 30), Inverkeithing Hillfield Swifts go to Premier Division leaders Broxburn Athletic, and Crossgates Primrose make the short derby trip to Hill of Beath Hawthorn.

Both of those matches are scheduled to kick off at 2.30pm.