Match report - Partick Thistle v Raith Rovers
Partick Thistle 1 v 2 Raith Rovers
Firhill Stadium, Glasgow.
Saturday 31st October, 2009
Reporter : Alan Murray
Referee- Brian Winter
Attendance: 3,084
New signing Steve Lovell was unable to make his debut due to the paper work not going through on time. Ian McCall’s team went out unchanged.
Raith were first to threaten and Johnny Tuffey came flying out from his area to head clear after a through ball caught the Thistle defense square. The ball was still not cleared but Tuffey was able to make a save from a Russell shot.
Tade was causing problems and his cross after the 10th minute made its way to Ryan Wallace but was unable to convert the chance.
After the 24th minute Raith came close to taking advantage of the pressure they were enjoying. A cross from Craig Wilson found Grant Murray whose volley brought an excellent save from Tuffey.
Then Thistle made an early substitution. Ian Maxwell went off to be replaced by Martyn Corrigan who went out to left back with Alan Archibald moving back into the center half position. Not sure if this was tactical or due to the fact Maxwell had received treatment a few minutes beforehand. Tade in particular was causing Maxwell a lot of problems with his pace.
Then after the 33rd minute Thistle went ahead against the run of play. Mark Corcoran started the move and worked the ball to Cairney who set up Donnelly, whose shot was not cleanly hit but was enough to make its way into the back of then net.
Thistle nearly made it two after the 41st minute. The ball fell to Hodge at the edge of the box and his shot drew out an excellent save from David McGurn in the Raith goal.
Raith then struck after the 43th minute. The ball was not properly cleared from a Raith corner and Ryan Wallace was clinical in his finish.
Thistle was pressing hard just before the interval; both Rowson and Mark Corcoran had good attempts on goal but with no reward.
First half - not a great performance for the Jags. Raith were closing down quickly meaning a of lot stray passes coming the Thistle side.
Thistle started the second half with purpose and quickly took a grip of the game. Raith were content to sit deep and use the pace of Tade on the break.
Rowson had a shot from outside the box but as usual he could not get the direction required.
A good move after the 57th minute involving Buchanan and Simon Donnelly but again the Raith defense were able to get the ball away.
Then with Thistle having pinned Raith into there own half, Jags were caught out by a through ball to Tade - his pace meant he was always going to be the winner to get the ball. Tuffey came out and made an excellent stop. The ball broke up into the air and took an unfavorable bounce which meant it landed to Robert Sloan who made no mistake and put them ahead.
Raith had another chance a few minutes later but Tuffey again produced a good save from a Mark Campbell header.
Liam Buchanan threatened in the 71st minute but was unable to direct his shot on goal. It was an under par performance from his usual high standard.
Chris Erskine was making an impact after his introduction even though he was playing on the right. He swung in a great cross after the 77th minute but Jim Hamilton’s header was not on target. The best chance for Thistle to equalize had gone.
Thistle continued to press for goal but never really looked likely to score, the Raith defense was simply outstanding. The best defensive performance I have seen this year.
Thistle suffered from an under par performance from Liam Buchanan. He is a vital player for us and we rely on him maybe too much. Hopefully Steve Lovell can solve this.
Man of the match - Tempted to give it to the Raith defense! David Rowson gets the award this week due to his battling performance in the centre of midfield. Hodge might have been ahead of Rowson if he hadn’t been subbed By McCall. A very strange decision.
Partick Thistle
Goal: Simon Donnelly (33).
| 1 | Jonny Tuffey |
| 2 | Paul Paton |
| 3 | Alan Archibald |
| 4 | Bryan Hodge (Chris Erskine (15), 63 mins) |
| 5 | John Robertson |
| 6 | Ian Maxwell (Martyn Corrigan (14), 25 mins) |
| 7 | Paul Cairney |
| 8 | David Rowson |
| 9 | Liam Buchanan |
| 10 | Simon Donnelly (Jim Hamilton (16), 68 mins) |
| 11 | Mark Corcoran |
Unused Subs: Craig Hinchcliffe (12), Kris Doolan (17).
Raith Rovers
Goals: Ryan Wallace (42), Robert Sloan (62).
| 1 | David McGurn |
| 2 | Craig Wilson |
| 3 | Laurie Ellis |
| 4 | Mark Campbell |
| 5 | Dougie Hill |
| 6 | Grant Murray |
| 7 | Ryan Wallace (Mark Ferry (12), 60 mins) |
| 8 | Allan Walker |
| 9 | Jonathon Russell (Lee Bryce (15), 85 mins) |
| 10 | Gregory Tade |
| 11 | Robert Sloan |