This Hogmanay it was the turn of fellow strugglers Newmains to visit the John Cumming Stadium for this West of Scotland League game. This was one of the few games that had escaped the weather this Saturday and as such a big crowd was in attendance with both sides needing a win.

Carluke welcomed new signing Connor McKenzie up front and the number 9 was to have a major impact on the game.Carluke started well and as early as the 7th minute Reece Whittingham had a shot directly at the Newmains Keeper which was well saved. Then in the 11th minute a good run by Dominic Small found Mckenzie but his sidefoot effort slid past the post.

Carluke continued to press Newmains in the early stages and in 15th minute they conceded a penalty for handling in the box. The ball was duly dispatched by Connor McKenzie to make the score 1-0 to Carluke.

Then only 2 minutes later McKenzie was the provider when his cross from the left found Mark O’Reilly who expertly volleyed past the Newmains Keeper from close range to make it 2-0 and had Carluke in cruise control.

However it was not all one way traffic and in the 25th minute Newmains pulled one back when their No 7 expertly turned the box and shot low into the bottom corner giving Josh McGill no chance. 2-1.

However in this pulsating match Carluke should have restored their 2 goal advantage within a minute when the ball broke to Mark O’Reilly but the midfielder could only manage to side foot wide when he would have been expected to score.

With halftime approaching Carluke were looking comfortable but on the sound of the whistle an error by McGill in the Carluke goal found him parrying a cross from tight on the byline into his own net. This was unfortunate for the normally reliable Keeper and the teams went in at halftime 2-2 and Carluke were to rue some of the missed chances.

As the second half got underway Newmains were playing with more authority after their first half escape and it didn’t take long for them to take the lead. A melee in the 6 yard box following a corner saw one of their players’ pulled down and the Referee awarding, what looked like, a soft penalty.This was duly dispatched and from 2-0 up Carluke now found themselves 3-2 down.

In a game that was flowing from end to end it wasn’t long before Carluke were back on level terms. A great cross from the left saw striker Connor McKenzie rise unchallenged and glance a header just inside the post giving the Newmains Keeper no chance and levelling things up at 3-3.

At this point Carluke were down to 10 men following a second booking for dissent for Dom Small but that didn’t stop them pushing for a fourth which duly arrived in the 77th minute and what a goal it was. Again it was a great cross from the left and from the edge of the box McKenzie hit a left foot volley which found it’s way through a ruck of players and int the bottom corner. This completed his hattrick and the goal was met with wild celebrations by both the players on the pitch and those at the side. 4-3 to Carluke.

The game was now end to end with chance at both goals but it was Newmains who were to have the last word when their midfielder was allowed to dance past a couple of defenders before shooting. The shot was well saved by McGill in the Carluke goal but his parried effort only found the Newmains No15 who stooped in to head the ball into the empty net to make it 4-4 in the 81st minute. This was to end the scoring and the bumper crowd left the match having been well entertained.

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Rovers Man of the Match
Connor McKenzie

Photography by Kevin Ramage