Carluke Rovers were back on league duty this week after a series of cup ties. They travelled to Easterhouse for this West of Scotland League game looking to continue their recent run of decent form. This would be another tough game though in a Division where there is not much between any of the teams.

The game kicked off with Easterhouse having the wind at their back but it was Carluke who started the quicker. A free kick from the right hand side in the first minute was crossed to the back post and Mikey Downes was there to header the ball to goal but the Easterhouse keeper, Jay Patterson tipped the ball over the bar. Then from the resultant corner it looked as if the ball had been bundled over the line by Carluke at the far post but the Referee, who was well placed, said no goal but it did look clearly over the line.

This was a great start from Carluke but in the 4th minute they gave away a soft penalty when Ronan Shiels went to clear the ball but just as he went to hit it an Easterhouse player stepped in front and took the brunt of the challenge. It was soft but the Referee pointed to the spot and the resultant kick was converted high into the middle of the goal. 1-0 to Easterhouse.

Unfortunately for Carluke this was to be the theme of the day with individual errors being punished by the home team. Neither keeper was really troubled in the first half but in the 32nd minute a stray Carluke pass in their own half found the Easterhouse winger. He ran towards goal and squared the ball into Kyle Ross who swept the ball past Josh McIntyre to make the score 2-0 at halftime to Easterhouse.

Carluke had a chance to regroup at halftime and it showed at the start of the second half when they should have got a goal back. An innocuous high cross into the box was flapped at by the Easterhouse Keeper and as it fell to the edge of the six yard box he was challenged with both himself and a Rovers playing ending up on the ground. The ball fell to Connor McQueen but with the goal at his mercy he managed to hit directly at an Easterhouse defender who cleared it off the line.

Carluke were to rue this missed opportunity as chances at either end were few and far between but Carluke were seeing more of the ball and were the better team as the game wore on. That said Easterhouse did create another good opportunity which was well saved by the McIntyre in the Carluke goal. Carluke did not heed this warning as in the 74th minute the game was effectively over as a contest. The ball was crossed in from the left and it was met by Kyle Ross who had the easiest of volleys from close range to side foot the ball into the back of the Carluke net to make the score 3-0.

This was a game where there was very little between the teams apart from errors made at the back for Carluke which were severely punished. This was further compounded 5 minutes from time when a clearance by McIntyre was mishit and found an Easterhouse midfielder in the middle of the Carluke half. He saw that the keeper was off his line and cleverly lobbed the ball over his head into the empty net to make the final score 4-0 to Easterhouse.

There is no doubt the result flattered Easterhouse but Carluke only had themselves to blame with defensive lapses and the inability to take the chances that they did make for themselves which could have changed the course of the match.

Nest week Carluke have a well earned rest with a free week and will look to recharge their batteries and get their league campaign back on track.