KIERAN SPEIRS went nap to help Spartans ease past a spirited Inch Colts in the South East Region 13s Division 3 League Cup final at Gyle Recreation Ground.
The striker scored all his side's goals in a 5-1 victory over the Double Hedges outfit, who showed an admirable attitude in persevering with their attractive passing game and were rewarded by Jamie Dickson's consolation strike.
The referee signall
ed the start to proceedings, and Spartans began their goal spree almost straight away. It took just 90 seconds for Andrew Gray to carve open the Inch defence with a precise cross, and Speirs' perfectly-timed run saw him stride in to finish at the second attempt, Colts goalie Dale Gilmour having pulled off an impressive – if ultimately fruitless – point-blank stop at the initial strike.
Ten minutes later, it was Speirs again earning the plaudits after a clinical finish to make it 2-0. After outpacing the Colts defence in chasing after a long forward pass, the No.9 lashed the ball past the advancing keeper in the resulting one-on-one. After the break, it was soon three in what played out as a mirror image of the second goal. Speirs again latched onto a through ball, and hit the ball high past Gilmour for his hat-trick.
The forward's appetite for goals wasn't sated yet, and he added a fourth a minute later by converting a close-range shot from a cross.
His team-mates had the simple task of giving Speirs the ball and merely observing as he took care of the goalscoring in what was a prolific period of striking by the young player. He rounded off his tally in the 50th minute – meaning an average of a goal every ten minutes – with a typically emphatic finish into the top corner following another one-on-one with Gilmour. The Inch players, having defeated more illustrious names such as Tynecastle en route to the final, must have been inconsolable on the inside, but, to their credit, didn't show as much in the dogged pursuit of a delightful passing game.
Taylor Lindsay's careful, curling ball from the right-wing bent into the penalty area where it was met by Colts compatriot Mason Stade, but the midfielder's shot was sliced wide. On 63 minutes, though, Inch deservedly registered a strike of their own when Justin McDermott played the ball to Dickson, and he placed a cool shot inside the left-hand post as goalkeeper Desmond Johnston closed in on the striker.
Michael De Angelis, Spartans' coach, took charge of his team in January and was happy to win some early silverware. He said: "The boys have been fantastic – credit to the team and the players. Our centre forward has scored five goals and Andrew Gray put in a real captain's performance."
Colts counterpart Davie Eaglesham was disappointed to have fallen at the final hurdle. "From a slow start, we took a while to get ourselves together. Spartans were fast and powerful up front. We made a few changes and tightened up the game, then scored a good goal. The most pleasing part is reaching the final itself after we put out Dunbar, Tynecastle and Newcraighall on the way."
Spartans: Desmond Johnston, Matthew Davitt, Gregg Watson, Fraser Miller, Scott Mackenzie, Mason Stade, Brendan Mair, Kieran Speirs, Andrew Gray, Brendan Scott, Rorie Booth, Tommy Bagshaw, David McFarlane, Toni Biesel.
Inch Colts: Dale Gilmour, Kieran Cantley, Taylor Lindsay, Kyle Millar, Graeme Masterson, JJ Gibson-Eaglesham, Lewis Bell, Ross Holdstock, Sean Lindsay, Bradley Ruthven, Brandon Voong, Jake Brunton, Justin McDermott, Darren Mitchell, Jamie Dickson.
