East Kilbride YM continued their fine West of Scotland League form with a hard-fought 2 0 win over Carluke Rovers. East Kilbride have found their stride in the league and have been scoring freely in recent weeks, while Carluke were still looking to recapture their early season form which saw them win their first seven games.

Carluke manager Thomas Devine handed first starts to Lewis Guy and Callum Shanks in defence, and both delivered solid performances, helping to keep the East Kilbride chances to a minimum.

The match was a tight affair and chances for either side were limited. The first real chance of the game came in the 24th minute. Carluke won a direct freekick 25 yards out in the middle of the park. The resultant kick was taken by Jamie McIntyre whose low shot hit the outside of the left hand post and ran to safety.

East Kilbride YM then had two strong opportunities before half-time. In the 39th minute striker Ross McDonagh collected a through ball and when he got into the box he unleashed a great effort that looked net bound until Garry Black in the Rovers goal got a brilliant hand to it and pushed it over the bar. This was followed by a skewed shot 2 minutes later from their winger from a tight angle that went harmlessly wide.

Unfortunately for Carluke the breakthrough for East Kilbride came right on halftime. A right-wing cross bounced off McDonagh only 3 yards out and was saved by Black as he was falling. However the ball wasn’t cleared and McDonagh was on hand to bundle the ball over the line and give East Kilbride YM the lead at halftime.

The second half was a battle throughout with neither keeper seriously troubled as defences stayed on top. However as Carluke were throwing men forward towards the end of the game to get the equaliser they left themselves a little exposed at the back.

Therefore it was no surprise when in the 85th minute a long ball out of defence was controlled by EK sub Andrew Perrie, who cut in from the left wing before shooting low down to Garry Black’s right side to score East Kilbride’s second goal and effectively end the game at 2-0.

To their credit Carluke continued to push for a goal but time was not on their side and the game finished with a victory for East Kilbride YM.

Although East Kilbride won the game, the game was closely contested, with Carluke showing resilience throughout.

Photography by Kevin Ramage