Craig’s view vs Bonnyrigg Rose Fife & Lothians Cup Final
Penicuik
Athletic
Established 1888
Well, I've had worse ends to a season!!
Can't speak highly enough about our players after the way they performed in the cup final, the
display from the lads was a carbon copy of the performance up at Kelty in the semi final, full of guts
and determination!! We wanted it more on the night and we went out and got it. Leading up to the
game very few gave us a chance of winning this match, probably because Bonnyrigg have beaten
us twice already this season but as I said on numerous occasions, we were well below our full
strength when the teams met previously. Going into the final, we were in much better shape, so I
knew we were in with a good chance and confidence in the changing room amongst the boys was
high.
We started the game well, got right in the faces of the Bonnyrigg players and this set the tone for the full 90 minutes. After
taking the lead early in the game, Bonnyrigg got an equaliser, despite this, we remained patient and continued to stick to our
game plan. Getting the second goal when we did (right on the half time whistle) was massive for us and gave us all the
encouragement we needed to go out the second half and finish the job off.
This season has easily been the most challenging, we got off to a great start and after a third of the way through the season,
we sat proudly at the top of the Super league. However our league campaign was sabotaged after a number of players let us
down badly through the middle part of the season. During that spell we plummeted down the league and got knocked out the
Scottish Cup at the hands of Lochee Utd (which was a particularly low point of the season). However after months of
struggling and players leaving the club, we were left with a hard core of players that really wanted to be at the club and really
wanted to win for the club, this has been evident in the final stages of the season, as these are the boys that turned the
season around, these are the boys that started to win league games again, these are the boys Dave White and I really enjoy
working with, these are the boys we can build solid foundations on and THESE ARE THE BOYS THAT WENT OUT AND
BEAT THE TOP TWO SUPERLEAGUE CLUBS AND WON THE FIFE AND LOTHIANS CUP!!!
I don't mind telling you, over the course of this season, my resolve has been tested like never before and I've lost count of the
number of times I've asked myself 'what am I'm doing this for?' because as only other managers will know, it can be the most
thankless job at times. BUT.... as I sit here in my office....looking at the Fife and Lothians cup....with my winners medal next to
it.....THAT'S WHAT I DO IT FOR!!!
Can't speak highly enough about our players after the way they performed in the cup final, the
display from the lads was a carbon copy of the performance up at Kelty in the semi final, full of guts
and determination!! We wanted it more on the night and we went out and got it. Leading up to the
game very few gave us a chance of winning this match, probably because Bonnyrigg have beaten
us twice already this season but as I said on numerous occasions, we were well below our full
strength when the teams met previously. Going into the final, we were in much better shape, so I
knew we were in with a good chance and confidence in the changing room amongst the boys was
high.
We started the game well, got right in the faces of the Bonnyrigg players and this set the tone for the full 90 minutes. After
taking the lead early in the game, Bonnyrigg got an equaliser, despite this, we remained patient and continued to stick to our
game plan. Getting the second goal when we did (right on the half time whistle) was massive for us and gave us all the
encouragement we needed to go out the second half and finish the job off.
This season has easily been the most challenging, we got off to a great start and after a third of the way through the season,
we sat proudly at the top of the Super league. However our league campaign was sabotaged after a number of players let us
down badly through the middle part of the season. During that spell we plummeted down the league and got knocked out the
Scottish Cup at the hands of Lochee Utd (which was a particularly low point of the season). However after months of
struggling and players leaving the club, we were left with a hard core of players that really wanted to be at the club and really
wanted to win for the club, this has been evident in the final stages of the season, as these are the boys that turned the
season around, these are the boys that started to win league games again, these are the boys Dave White and I really enjoy
working with, these are the boys we can build solid foundations on and THESE ARE THE BOYS THAT WENT OUT AND
BEAT THE TOP TWO SUPERLEAGUE CLUBS AND WON THE FIFE AND LOTHIANS CUP!!!
I don't mind telling you, over the course of this season, my resolve has been tested like never before and I've lost count of the
number of times I've asked myself 'what am I'm doing this for?' because as only other managers will know, it can be the most
thankless job at times. BUT.... as I sit here in my office....looking at the Fife and Lothians cup....with my winners medal next to
it.....THAT'S WHAT I DO IT FOR!!!
