MATCH REPORT | A PROMOTION PARTY AT TANNADICE
4th May 2024
DUNFERMLINE 0 (5)
DUNDEE UNITED 0 (3)
CINCH RESERVE LEAGUE CUP
14:00 TUESDAY 25TH OCTOBER
EAST END PARK
Dundee United B’s cinch reserve League Cup campaign continued in the Kingdom of Fife as they faced fellow Group One outfit Dunfermline Athletic on Matchday Two of the competition.
Line-Up
Andy Payne and Brian Grant selected no fewer than four first-teamers, as Peter Pawlett, Mathew Cudjoe, Sadat Anaku and Archie Meekison were all included in the starting XI. U18s captain Craig Moore played in the middle of a back three alongside Jacob Comerford and Layton Bisland, whilst Flynn Duffy and Miller Thomson found themselves deployed as attacking wing-backs.
Inside the opening two minutes, United’s width carved out an opening for Sadat as he met a fierce Duffy cross from the left but failed to divert his header on target.
United In Driver's Seat
A compact Dunfermline backline found itself exposed once more soon after when a raking cross-field ball from Comerford was collected well by Cudjoe on the burst who breezed past Callum Hannah into the right side of the box. The Ghanaian found Sadat in space on the penalty spot who pulled the trigger first-time, Sam Young making a vital, sliding block to thwart United’s number nine.
The Pars were more than happy to surrender possession to the visitors’ defensive trio, but striker Taylor Sutherland worked tirelessly to cut the central passing lane into Archie Meekison – who took up a deeper midfield role alongside Finn Robson. This led to an emphasis on getting the ball out to the wingbacks sharply when looking to build from the back.
Meekison did however pick up a neat pocket of space on the right to collect a low ball from Comerford on the half-turn before dinking a delicate pass over the opposition’s backline for onrushing Sadat. The Ugandan tried his luck again from an acute angle after getting the better of Miller Fenton but his effort flashed across the face of Max Little’s goal.
Meekison Dictating The Tempo
Meekison and Sadat combined once more on the half-hour mark, this time the latter cushioning a lofted ball over the top down on his chest nicely before blasting into the Norrie McCathie stand from close-range with his left.
Almost immediately after, Academy graduate Meekison teed up Cudjoe after neat interplay with Duffy down the left. Cudjoe wriggled into the area under pressure from a cadre of white shirts and dragged a low shot wide of the upright.
The East End Park outfit finally had a sniff of goal as the interval loomed when Kane Ritchie-Hosier strode forward unchallenged and laid the ball right to Kyle MacDonald in space on the right, his drilled shot skidding narrowly past the post with United stopper Jack Newman beaten all ends up
United responded quickly through the lively Cudjoe who went for goal from the edge of the D and found his relatively tame effort parried by Little. From the resultant corner, Ritchie-Hosier cleared a strong Comerford header off the line, with Bisland’s follow-up well wide of the mark.
Both Bryan Mwangi and Kai Fotheringham were introduced from the bench at the break, replacing Pawlett and Anaku.
Pars Bite Back
After being under the cosh in the first period, the Pars started the second brightly. Sutherland managed to beat the offside trap and race away down the right and, with substitute Jake Rennie completely unmarked at the back stick, his eventual cross was cut out smartly by Newman to prevent a certain opener for Dunfermline.
Less than 60 seconds later, Thomson connected with a low ball across the six-yard box from a Fotheringham set-piece but diverted over on the slide.
Newman was forced into action for only the second time of the afternoon by MacDonald’s fierce drive from the corner of the box which he claimed at the second attempt.
Cudjoe going Close
On the hour mark, Cudjoe was agonisingly close to getting the goal his performance deserved after a sweeping move from left to right by United. Meekison whipped the ball wide for Thomson who touched a first-time pass into the box for underlapping colleague Mwangi. The 17-year-old sneaked a delicate cross along the six-yard line, with Cudjoe inches away from tapping home into the empty net.
Dynamic winger Cudjoe was at the heart of the action again as he left Liam Hoggan in his dust down by the corner flag before pulling the ball back for unmarked Fotheringham inside the area who should’ve hit the target on the half-volley. This, however, wasn’t a representation of Fotheringham’s cameo from the bench as his trickery and ball retention was easy on the eye throughout the second half.
With the deadlock unbroken and penalties looming, both sides had similar chances to claim three points in Group One. For United, Mwangi’s curling strike from the right of the area narrowly evaded the top corner, whilst substitute Ewan McLeod’s effort at the other end was too high. Spot-kicks would decide who took the bonus point in this cinch Reserve League Cup clash as referee, and former Dunfermline goalkeeper, Sean Murdoch’s whistle brought an entertaining 90 minutes to an end.
Spot-kick Disappointment
After five flawless penalties, Comerford blazed the ball over the bar to hand Dunfermline the advantage. 3-2 it remained. Both Ritchie-Hosier and Andrew Tod made no mistake, with the latter executing a cheeky Panenka to seal the additional point for his side.
Teamlines
Dunfermline: Little, Hoggan, Hannah, Young, Fenton, MacDonald, Beagley, Tod, T.Sutherland, Ritchie-Hosier, Nasseri (Mehmet, Rennie, McLeod, McDowell, J.Sutherland, Reid)
United: Newman, Bisland, Duffy, Comerford, Moore, Robson, Thomson, Meekison, Sadat, Pawlett, Cudjoe (Adams, Fotheringham, Mwangi, Bertie, Heenan)
