Falkirk continued their unbeaten run against Motherwell as they sealed a slender yet dominant 1-0 victory. An impressive display from The Bairns, who ensured their hopes of a fifth place finish are still alive.
Another entertaining clash between the sides in what was their final meeting of the season. McGlynn’s side really impressed against an in-form Motherwell, and would have scored a few more on another day.
Both sides really struggled to create much in the way of scoring chances inside the first twenty minutes, an uncharacteristic start to the game from the two teams after what we have grown to expect from them over the course of the season.
The first big chance came just after the twenty-minute mark when Elliot Watt stole possession from Broggio 30-yards from goal; he played a neat pass through for Elijah Just who struck narrowly wide of the far post.
This was a wake-up call for The Bairns, who responded by creating two fantastic chances of their own.
A brilliant Broggio flick on sent Barney Stewart through on goal, he raced towards goal but couldn’t keep his effort down as it soared over the bar.
Another good opportunity fell Stewart’s way moments later. This time, the ball dropped to him inside the box at a tight angle. He struck it well but could only find the side netting.
The Bairns came close to an opener just before the interval, some great work on the right wing from Lissah saw him play in a great ball, which was met by Calvin Miller. His effort was blocked, and Barney’s effort on the rebound was well saved, meaning the hunt for the opener continued.
Some fantastic pressing from Barney Stewart had Falkirk inches away from breaking the deadlock yet again. He closed down Callum Ward and won the ball inside the 6-yard box. A fantastic recovery from the keeper saw him make a great save, though, and the score was locked at 0-0 at the break.
Falkirk retained their form heading into the second period and were rewarded with another golden opportunity when Leon McCann’s fantastic cross was met by the head of Stewart, but it dropped just wide, and it was beginning to seem like one of those days for the young striker.
The Bairns finally found their opener just after the hour mark, and it came through Henry Cartwright almost immediately after coming on as a substitute.
He was slipped through by a neat Broggio through ball, before slotting it past Ward from inside the area. A thoroughly deserved lead for Falkirk, and no one could have said it wasn’t coming.
Miller almost doubled the lead a few minutes later as he danced through the Motherwell defence. He made it deep inside the box before losing his footing at the last second and firing wide.
Kyrell Wilson almost became the second super-sub of the afternoon, taking it round a Motherwell defender before unleashing a powerful strike towards goal, forcing a big stop from the visiting keeper.
Falkirk held out well in the remaining minutes and, apart from a late goal mouth scramble, The Steelmen really struggled to create many clear cut chances.
Another huge win for The Bairns, who have taken ten points from a possible twelve this season against a strong Motherwell side.
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Teams
Falkirk Starting XI: Nicky Hogarth, Leon McCann, Brad Spencer ©, Ben Broggio, Finn Yeats, Lewis Neilson, Barney Stewart, Connor Allan, Dylan Tait, Filip Lissah, Calvin Miller.
Substitutes: Joe Hastings, Keelan Adams, Coll Donaldson, Brian Graham, Ross MacIver, Henry Cartwright (63’), Kyrell Wilson, Ethan Ross, Ben Parkinson.
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Motherwell Starting XI: Callum Ward, Stephen O’Donnell, Tom Sparrow, Callum Slattery, Lukas Fadinger, Paul McGinn ©, Tawanda Maswanhise, Elliot Watt, Elijah Just, Emmanuel Longelo, Stephen Welsh.
Substitutes: Matthew Connelly, Liam Gordon, Sam Nicholson, John Koutroumbis, Oscar Priestman, Luca Ross, Callum Hendry, Regan Charles-Cook, Ibrahim Said.
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Referee: Dan McFarlane
Assistant Referees: Colin Drummond and Sean Duff
Fourth Official: Lewis Hogarth
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Attendance: 7,566
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