Queens 1 St.Johnstone 0 |
| Posted by Administrator (admin) on Mar 07 2007 at 2:21 AM |
What a night of action at Palmerston. Following the great result and performance at Gretna on Saturday we were treated to another fine display from a Queens team in top form at present.In the main stand tonight were quite a few Gretna players and officials and they must have been impressed by the performance of Dumfries and Galloways number one team.
There was a crowd of just under 1800 and I was amazed at just how well the pitch looked and how green it was following all the recent rain. Queens lined up exactly as on Saturday with the same players also on the bench. Saints were almost the same line up as in their 1-1 draw at Dingwall.
The match started with Saints pushing forward and looking eager to make an early mark on the game. After just 3 mins ex Airdrie winger Willie?McLaren got space down the right side and fired the ball across where Peter McDonald got in a header which was well saved by young Jamie MacDonald in the Queens goal. This was the first of many saves tonight including a few exeptional ones.
Queens first effort arrived in 7 minutes when Stevie Murrays free kick was knocked back out by O'Connor and Paton flashed a shot just wide.The lively Paul Sheerin then shot over for the visitors before ex Saints striker Stephen Dobbie picked up the ball just outside the box and let fly with a low shot which went just wide of the left hand post. Simon Mensing then had a turn and shot which the Queens keeper did not hold but the ball was cleared. It was end to end stuff and next up was Jason Scotland but his powerful shot was saved at the expense of a corner but big Kevin James saw his header saved by Jamie MacDonald. It was then that man Dobbie who replied for Queens when after good work from Jim Thomson he hit a shot on the turn which was just wide of the target. This was followed by an Adams shot which was blocked for a corner. Im not sure how many corner kicks there were in this match but it was certainly a lot more than usual. Kevin James then got the first yellow card of the game after 27 minutes for a block on Dobbie. Queens were now getting into top gear and looking the?more likely?side to score and that goal arrived after 33 mins when the ball was not cleared in the box and the lively Stevie Murray popped up in the six yard box to force the ball home for his first Queens goal. The delight on the wee mans face was a joy as he raced away to celebrate.
After 38 minutes we should have been 2-0 ahead . Some neat work from John O'Neill saw the ball end up in the box where an unmarked Sean O'Connor somehow managed to hit the post when it looked easier to score,with the ball bouncing back into the keepers arms. At first I thought it was Jamie Adams who had this effort as from a distance I theink him and big Sean are quite alike !
A couple of minutes later big Jim Thomson got forward and his header from a free kick was well saved but the flag was already up for off side. Half time arrived and the players left the park to great applause.
The second forty-five minutes started at a frantic pace and the play was flowing from end to end. A nice ball from Murray looked like it had set O'Connor free but the linesmans flag went up. Saints had brought on the young Portugese player Morais, on loan from Charlton?at half time for Sheerin.There was then a period of a lot of free kicks being conceded ,mostly by the visitors and I had a feeling a few more names would be joining Kevin James in the Refs book and unfortunately the next one to be added was Jamie Adams after 54 mins. A minute later most of Palmerston had their hearts in their mouths when the ball was not cleared in the Queens box and after a frantic scramble the ball came back of the post?then?the follow up shot went just wide. The yellow cards continued as first Derek McInnes then Morais?went into the book as Saints tried to push for a leveller. Stephen Dobbie then received the ball from Laughlin but his shot was saved by Cuthbert. Jason Scotland, who had shown some decent pieces of skill was replaced after 67 mins by Steven Milne and at the same time Jonjo O'Neill went off for Stevie Tosh. There was then a shot by James that was wide folowed by another Saints shot which was well saved by Jamie MacDonald. Lilley came on to replace McLaren for
the visitors and a minute later Queens replaced O'Connor with Barrowman and shortly after Graham Weir came on for the hard working Dobbie. These were identical changes from the win at Raydale on Saturday and were made at similar times. As the game went into the closing stages a goal could well have arrived at either end but we had Jamie MacDonald to thank for a top class reflex save after 85 minutes when he stopped a close range header from Lilley hitting the net. As we entered the final minute a clearance from Jim Thomson found Andy Barrowman in space but his shot was weak and was saved by Kevin Cuthbert and this was then followed by a neat lob from Weir which the keeper also saved. In stoppage time Saints had the last chance from a corner but it was cleared and to the releif of most of the fans inside the ground the final whistle went and Queens had jumped above Ross County into 8th place in the league. It had been a brilliant few days and to take maximum points from the two top sides was an amazing achievement. We now look forward to the visit of Ross County on Saturday in what is another crucial game. A win then would see us well on our way to safety and a mid table finish. Who would have thought that 3 months ago.
Queen of the South: MacDonald, Paton, McQuilken, Lauchlan, Jim Thomson, Scally, Adams, O'Neill (Tosh 67), Murray, Dobbie (Weir 82), O'Connor (Barrowman 76). Subs Not Used: Corr, Henderson.
Booked: Adams. Goal: Murray 33.
St Johnstone: Cuthbert, Lawrie, Stanic, McManus, James, McInnes, McLaren (Lilley 75), Mensing, Sheerin (Morais 46), MacDonald, Scotland (Milne 67). Subs Not Used: Halliwell, Anderson.
Booked: James, McInnes, Morais.
Att: 1,770
Ref: S Finnie
Musky. 
