Queen of the South v Clyde

Recap

Clyde was left cursing a poor performance as three second-half goals helped the home side to a deserved victory at Palmerston Park.

The Bully Wee fielded the same starting eleven that performed at Firhill in midweek, although Christian Smith and Marvin Wilson both moved back onto the bench.

A barnstorming start to the game by Queens saw them twice test David Hutton in the opening minutes. First, Paul Burns cut inside the box and his curling effort was tipped over the bar. Then, Sean O’Connor produced a similar strike that was stopped by Hutton and the loose ball just ran away from Burns.

Against the run of play though, Clyde took the lead. A neat ball into the penalty box released Gary Arbuckle and he was sent sprawling by Jim Thomson. The resulting spot kick was converted by Michael McGowan, after an argument with Dougie Imrie, to give Clyde an undeserved lead.

This saw a change in play and the rest of the half saw a fairly even spread of possession and chances, with Clyde looking threatening at corners and the home side continuing to pass the ball neatly. Hutton had to look lively to deal with a bursting run into the box by on-loan striker, John Stewart, whilst Clyde spurned arguably the best chance of the game. A long ball forward saw a hesitant Jamie McDonald venture from his goal and appear to twist his knee as Arbuckle tackled him. The striker looked up and squared the ball to Ruari McLennan but the young midfielder took his eye off the ball and it slid under his foot with the goal gaping.

Given the break that Clyde had gained in the first half, you would assume that they would take advantage of it and push on in the second half. However, as Clyde sat back, the home side continued to dominate and Hutton had to look lively to deny both Brian Gilmour and substitute Stephen Dobbie. Then, as Clyde looked to be weathering the storm, the home side levelled. A neatly worked corner saw Steven Tosh work his way to the bye-line and clip a cross into the box, where Dobbie pulled the ball down and volleyed home with no Clyde player near him. A disappointing goal to lose given the good defending previously.

Clyde aimed to change things by introducing both Smith and Wilson from the bench but the game had gone totally by this point and it was no surprise when the home team took the lead. A Tosh free kick was blocked by the wall but the ball ran neatly for Burns to slide home under Hutton.

Despite this set-back, Clyde almost responded immediately when McGowan’s corner struck the cross bar but no Clyde man reacted to the loose ball and the chance was lost. In truth, it was to be the only threat that Clyde possessed in the remainder of the game.

As the match settled into its final stages, Queen of the South killed the game with a third goal. Burns was tripped inside the area and a penalty was awarded, which Tosh slotted away with ease. The game then petered out as the home side left delighted with the result, whilst Clyde wondered if a more offensive approach may have paid dividends.