Queen’s Park 2 Cove Rangers 1 – High Five for Fowler

QUEEN’S PARK ended the Premier Sports Cup campaign with a win – thanks to yet another Josh Fowler strike.

The summer signing hit his fifth of the season in the 90th minute when he turned in a supply from first-half goalscorer Michael Ruth after coming on as a second half substitute.

Ruth had cancelled out Mitch Megginson’s opener for Cove from the penalty spot – and the frontmen sent Cove out of the competition.

Hopes of a second Spiders qualification in successive years had already ended after the valiant 3-1 defeat to Falkirk on Tuesday night. That allowed Sean Crighton to ring the changes – eight in total – to the team that went down valiantly 3-1 at Falkirk on Tuesday night.

And his squad ended the Premier Sports Cup campaign on a high.

His switches included full debuts for Ricky Waugh and Darryl Carrick as well as further starts for last season’s B team stalwarts Aiden McGinlay, Timam Scott and Jamie Bradley – the latter moved wide on the left for Waugh’s role in the middle.

The young side put on a show for the home crowd at times, but the scores were level at the interval after an exchange of first half goals – and chances.

Cove hit the crossbar with a David Eguaibor header after just six minutes, and Michael Ruth did likewise six minutes later – slamming a Henry Fieldson cut-back off the woodwork after a clever pass from Matthew Shiels.

The Spiders turned it on again with another flowing passing move along the left wing, but that proved their downfall as the switch of play from Carrick on the right to Timam Scott was cut out and one quick break later, Cove striker Mitch Megginson slid in to net the opener. 

Queen’s Park responded immediately with former Spider Mikey Doyle knocking a Ruth header off the line after Carrick had met a Bradley corner.

The visitors’ lead only lasted five minutes as, not to be outdone after being denied two minutes earlier, the striker got his reward for a physical first-half shift with the equaliser from the penalty spot.

Timam Scott’s direct running and stepovers unbalanced Liam Parker and the Cove defender pushed the wide man over inside the area. Michael Ruth stepped up and slammed the spot-kick home for his second of the season.

Ruth then turned provider as he cushioned a cross-field pass into Bradley’s pass on the half-hour but the midfielder’s strike was straight at Robbie Mutch.

The midfielder has been involved in a tussle with Cove right-back Layton Bisland throughout the first-half of his unorthodox left-wing role, and he beat his man in the air seven minutes before half-time to set up Waugh. He released Fieldson with a clever no-look pass and the low cross fizzed across the face of goal inches away from Ruth sliding in.

That’s how things stood at the interval though Mackenzie Strachan curled a last minute free-kick over for the visitors and after the break, Queen’s were forced into two substitutions.

Carlo Pignatiello did not re-emerge from the dressing room, with Roddy Macgregor his replacement and seven minutes in Charlie Fox took over the captain’s armband from Euan Murray after the defender took a nasty head knock. 

Queen’s had a huge shout for a penalty when Justin Eguaibor – David’s brother – blocked a Ruth drive on the edge of the area, then Cove converted a breakaway but were flagged offside.

Sean Crighton then made two more attacking changes –  Seb Drozd and Aidan Connolly replaced Timam Scott and Aiden McGinlay – but his side had a let-off at the back when a slip from Carrick on 67 minutes released David Eguaibor but the forward was denied by Wills’ feet.

Bradley was the next enforced sub for the Spiders, replaced by Josh Fowler with little more than a quarter of an hour to go.

The striker has netted four in three Premier Sports Cup games so far this season and didn’t have too much to work with until taking Ruth’s ball into the box on his chest in the 90th minute, and he steered a brilliant fifth of the campaign inside the post to avoid a penalty shoot-out and send the Spiders fans home happy.

QUEEN’S PARK: Wills, Fieldson, Murray (Fox 53), Ruth, Pignatiello (Macgregor 46), Carrick, Waugh, McGinlay (Drozd 64), Scott (Connolly 64), Bradley (Fowler 73), Shiels.
Subs: Ferrie, Longridge, McDonnell, Burke.

COVE RANGERS: Mutch, Bisland, Doyle, Strachan (Trialist 84), J. Eguaibor, Harrington, Megginson (Donaldson 86), Glass (Yule 40), Darge, D.Eguaibor, Parker.
Subs: Demus, Ochmanski, Milnes.