Cup showcase at Holm Park

Published 31 Mar 2010 15:00 0 Comments

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CLYDEBANK'S bid to reach their second consecutive Scottish Junior Cup final received a monumental boost this week.

The Scottish Junior Football Association's (SJFA) chief executive, Tom Johnstone, inspected the pitch and facilities at Holm Park on Monday afternoon and gave the club the green light for their semi-final against Largs Thistle to be played there.

Last season Bankie fans had to travel to Vale of Leven's Millburn Park to cheer on their side in the first leg of the semi-final tie against Pollok.

But thanks to the decision of the SJFA beaks, there will be no such travelling for Bankies fans this time out when they play the semi-final second leg on April 17.

The match will be the biggest game Clydebank has hosted since Kilbowie Park closed its doors in 1996 when they were a senior team.

Chairman Gordon Robertson hailed the hard work of Clydebank and Yoker Athletic to get the stadium up to scratch.

He told Sport Scene: "We are absolutely delighted the match will be played at Holm Park.

"Last year we brought a huge support to Millburn Park to back the team out of Clydebank in what was a home tie.

"For the team to match last year's achievements and be able play the semi-final in Clydebank is fantastic.

"This is the reward for all the hard work of Clydebank and Yoker Athletic on Holm Park.

"This is the biggest match for nearly fifteen years since Clydebank were a senior team and moved away from the town.

"It will be a fantastic occasion and we are looking forward to hosting it and neutrals can come along and support the team in the semi-final."

Budgie McGhie is also delighted to be playing the tie on home turf and said: "There has been a lot of hard work put in and there will be a lot more hard work to come. I'm sure the players would have rather played at Holm Park and it's great financially and commercially that we don't have to play outside the boundaries."

McGhie saw Largs Thistle's 1-0 victory over giants Irvine Meadow on Saturday and he was impressed by what he saw.

The Bankies boss also insisted they will savour their cup success.

He added: "They are very good at what they do. They're in the semis on merit and they deserved their win on Saturday.

"Our aim is to go down to Largs and keep the tie alive to bring it back to Holm Park.

"I think our success in the Scottish Junior Cup has been down to a big effort from everyone at the club.

"There are a lot of big clubs who haven't been in the latter stages of the competition for years, so we are going to enjoy it while we can."

Bankies fans are expected to travel to the sea side town in their hundreds for the first leg on April 10.

And the UCS Trust is taking deposits for fans to travel on the buses.

The £1 deposit can be paid on Saturday at the league game against Maybole (kick-off 2pm). Call Fred McCosh on 07890410606 for more details.

Meanwhile, Clydebank sealed a comfortable 3-0 victory over Hurlford United on Saturday following the cancellation of their league clash with Dalry Thistle.

Mark Hailstones, Steven Dymock and Stevie Dallas got on the score sheet at Petershill Park.

This article appeared in Clydebank Post 31 Mar 10

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