Redhall Star shining bright after dumping Dalkeith in Logan Cup

REDHALL STAR set up a third-round tie against Loanhead MW in the Logan Cup after defeating another Midlothian side, Dalkeith MW, 4-1 at Saughton 3G.

Three second-half goals sent a dominant Star to deserved victory in the Lothian and Edinburgh Amateur Football Association's most keenly-contested cup competition, in one of just three LEAFA games to be played at the weekend because of the wintry weather.

Redhall sit second bottom of Premier Division 1, five places below mid-table Dalkeith, having played half the number of games contested by their Midlothian counterparts but with a similar win-loss ratio.

It was no surprise, then, that two evenly-matched sides played out a first-half draw, tying 1-1 at the interval courtesy of a Redhall opener by Craig Lynes and a Dalkeith leveller through Laurie Flynn. Goals by Alan Sheriff and Chris White pulled Redhall clear soon after the restart, and Lynes added his second of the game to complete the scoring.

The high quality of the goals scored offered a welcome lift to the sketchy nature of the game overall as the teams struggled to retain possession for any prolonged period.

Dalkeith's John Flynn saw his third-minute header hit the woodwork early on, but Redhall emerged thereafter not nearly as rattled as their crossbar had been and duly took the lead on the half-hour. Craig Cockburn rolled the ball across the penalty area to Lynes, and the lanky midfielder side-footed a shot through a ruck of players and past a seemingly unsighted Barrie Lindley in the Dalkeith goal to hand Star the lead.

On the stroke of half-time though, Dalkeith drew level. Rory Mair's delivery from the right wing appeared to be his side's most potent form of ammunition for his attacking team-mates, and another superb centre from the No.6 found Flynn, who planted his header into the bottom right-hand corner of Andy Leask's goal.

With the score locked at 1-1, Redhall proved far stronger than their opponents in the second half, scoring with a regularity and ease that will no doubt concern the Dalkeith management.

Cockburn again assisted for Star's second of the game on 56 minutes, floating a cross to the far post. Kenny Fisher expertly headed the ball back across goal, where Sheriff was well-placed eight yards out to net with little fuss.

Cockburn completed a hat-trick of setups when, five minutes later, he slipped the ball to striker White in a central position 25 yards out. White advanced to the edge of the penalty area, before firing a waist-high strike, showing great technique, into the left-hand corner of Lindley's goal.

Towering midfielder Lynes struck his second of the game, and Redhall's fourth, to complete the scoring and leave Star coach Keith Kinnaird a satisfied man.

He said: "We didn't get it right in the first half, and our play just didn't come together. In the second half, though, the boys did what we asked of them, playing a short, sharp passing game. We're caught out at the back too often, but our forwards are always going to get goals. I didn't think we ever looked under any real pressure."

The winner of the next round tie at Loanhead will play Premier Division 2 side Heriot Vale for a place in the quarter-final of the competition.

Dalkeith MW: Barrie Lindley, John Flynn, Darren Combe, John Taylor, Kevin Connolly, Rory Mair, Darren Stewart, Mark Brown, Chris Wright, Michael Laing, Laurie Flynn, James Henderson, Greig Anderson, Kenny Carson, Stephen Wilson.

Redhall Star: Andy Leask, John Daly, Scott Kinnaird, Jonah Fransson, Sandy Munro, Craig Lynes, Craig Fell, Alan Sheriff, Kenny Fisher, Chris White, Craig Cockburn, Gavin Liddell, Keith Kinnaird, Morgan Black, Ross Pryde.