Greenock youngsters dream of league and cup double after dramatic shoot-out win
GREENOCK Juniors' 2008 squad are out to complete a league and cup double this weekend – after advancing to the final of their Divisional Cup tournament in dramatic fashion.
While most of the weekend's penalty shoot-out headlines were being made by Aberdeen at Hampden, Jimmy Thelin's squad weren't the only team to enjoy a nail-biting sudden death victory, with the Nock 2008s withstanding a dramatic comeback from their opponents, OLA Union, to triumph from the spot.
Jay Beckley's hat-trick opened up a 3-0 lead for the Nock youngsters at half-time – but if any of the Greenock players or coaches felt that it was 'job done' with 45 minutes still to play, they were given a rude awakening after the break.
Jay Beckley scored a first-half hat-trick before being sent off after the interva;. (Image: Social media) First, Beckley blotted his copybook when he was shown a red card by referee William Johnstone, and with a man advantage, OLA roared back into contention, reducing the leeway to two goals and then to one before levelling at 3-3 with the last kick of the ball.
Thankfully for those involved from a Greenock perspective, the Nock's players managed to recover their poise for the resulting shoot-out, running out 4-1 winners, with William Hudson, Dylan Andrew, Kyle Dorrian and Braiden Millerall on target from the spot.
Goalkeeper Jack Hardie, who had made some crucial saves during the 90 minutes, produced two excellent stops during the shoot-out to pave the way for the Nock to advance.
Man of the Match was Ruaridh Davidson who was outstanding from start to finish.
READ MORE: Greenock 2008s secure league title in style with spectacular 9-1 win
The team can now look forward to the final this Sunday at the King George V facility in Renfrew against Drumchapel United. Kick off is at 10am.
The team have already won their league and it is a great opportunity to add a further trophy and make an impressive season even more special.
The boys have a scheduled league match on Tuesday night, also against Drumchapel, which will allow the free-scoring Beckley to serve his suspension and ensure he is eligible for the final.
Greenock's 2008 squad reached their divisional cup final - but their 2009 counterparts just missed out. (Image: Unsplash.com) Meanwhile, Greenock's 2009 squad narrowly failed in their bid to follow in the footsteps of their older clubmates when they lost 2-1 away to Knightswood in the semi-final of their divisional cup.
Tyler Boyland scored the Nock's goal and was also man of the match. Despite the disappointment of losing in the semi-final the group can look back on a very satisfactory first season.
They went through a difficult period in early autumn, but have developed very impressively since then; finishing a very creditable sixth in Division One of the PJDYFL, as well as reaching Saturday's semi-final and bringing on a very talented group of players.
The 2009s can now look forward to a well-earned summer break, though it won't be long before they're raring to go in 2025-26.
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