Forfar Athletic 4 Linlithgow Rose 1 (AET)

Scottish Cup, Second Round

Saturday 9 January 2021

Station Park

It took two hours of what manager Stuart Malcolm would later label “typical cup-tie football” to get the job done. But Forfar made it in the end. Tied 1-1 with Linlithgow Rose after 90-minutes, three goals in the first-half of extra-time - the first from Martyn Fotheringham and two from fellow substitute Jordan Allan - saw the Loons through to the third round of the Scottish Cup.

  In what was the first edition of a five-match dug-out ban, Malcolm was forced to view the proceedings from the sidelines. And he liked much of what he saw, professing himself happy with many aspects of his side’s most productive goal-scoring performance of the season.

  “It was a very difficult afternoon,” said Malcolm. “I think I kicked every ball myself as Linlithgow made it tough for us. I knew they would. Brown Ferguson is a good manager and he had his team set-up well. I thought we were the better side, although we should have scored our second goal earlier than we did. And Marc McCallum had to make a good save when the game was still 1-1. But after that, we showed our quality. 

  “In extra-time, we clearly deserved to win the game. I was pleased with our overall play. We had to break their spirit, their fight. They were still in it until we scored our third goal. We stayed with three at the back and that paid off for us. I was extremely happy with the way we defended.”

  Amongst the highlights for Malcolm was the interaction of striker Steven Doris (returning from long-term injury) and his fellow forwards and the 18-minute cameo enacted by Fotheringham, during which the veteran midfielder headed home the vital second goal.

  “Steven wasn’t meant to play as long as he did,” admitted Malcolm. “But what he brings was there for all to see. He holds the ball and gets us up the park with people moving either side. And when he does that they have the confidence to run off him. Scott Shepherd did that particularly well today, coming in from wide areas. But we have to wrap Steven in cotton wool. We need him available every Saturday going forward. We can’t afford to see him injured again.

  “Foxy (Fotheringham) was great, even if he was only on the pitch for ‘five minutes.’ We thought he could give us the same sort of focal point Steven provided. The plan was to give him maybe 70 minutes, then have Foxy play the last 20. He’s so good at linking the play. Then he ends up getting on the end of a cross and scoring. He’s at a stage of his career where he’s not really looking to be playing. I was delighted to see him get a goal.”

  There were also words of encouragement for Allan, whose five-goal tally this season makes him Forfar’s top-scorer in competitive matches.

  “Jordan scored twice, which is what he does,” said Malcolm. “He gets into good areas and puts the ball in the net. There’s a lot more to playing up front at this level though. Sometimes we struggle to get the ball up the park when the link-up play isn’t quite there. If it breaks down, how else do we get the ball into the opposition box? That’s been one of our big problems this season. 

  “But fair play to Jordan. When he gets the ball in and around the box, he scores goals. But we need to get there in the first place. And that’s something Jordan needs to work on. He’ll get there though. He’s such a good boy. He wants to work hard. And yes, he’s a wee bit frustrated when he’s not in the team. Which is absolutely what I want to hear. He was excellent when he comes on. He made a statement today.”

  Looking forward, Malcolm confirmed the mid-week signing of centre-back Hamish Thomson - who was unfortunately unavailable through illness - and the imminent arrival of “a couple of new bodies.”

  “We’re still searching for a centre-half,” continued Malcolm. “That’s a key area we need to strengthen. BJ Coll has played at right-back again today. And young Sam Fisher has gone back to his parent club, Dundee. So we’re short in defence, which is not helped by Hamish’s illness. We need to get some experience in that part of the pitch. Which is not to say we are not looking at other areas of the park. But that is our priority.”

  Well, that and three points at Dumbarton next Saturday. 

Forfar Athletic goals: Mackintosh (14), Fotheringham (95), Jordan Allan (101,103)

Linlithgow Rose goal: Wilson (11)

Referee: Kevin Graham