Points Shared At Parklea
- Winning In The Rain
- Apr 13
- 5 min read
Saturday 12th April 2025
Scottish Premier Amateur Football Association
Premiership
Port Glasgow Amateurs 3 - 3 Oban Saints
Parklea Playing Fields
Greenock Road
Port Glasgow
PA14 6TR
Kick-off 2.00 pm
Referee Mr Donald McCallum
An eighty-eighth minute goal from Rhys Millar earned a very youthful Oban Saints side a share of the points against Port Glasgow Amateurs at Parklea last Saturday afternoon. With eleven senior players unavailable, Manager Ross Maitland put his faith in youth and named the youngest ever Saints' squad for a competitive fixture. Despite the gulf in experience Saints battled hard throughout clawing their way back from two goals down to earn a deserved draw with Millar's late strike.
Saints lined up with Graham Douglas in goal behind a back three of Keiron Lopez, Aidan Jackson and Keiran Griffin. Aaron McKay and Alec McInroy played the holding role in front of the back three with Rhys Millar, Connor Beattie and Donald Campbell in the more advanced midfield roles. Up front was the twin strike-force of Connor Moore and Captain David Beaton. Manager Ross Maitland pulled on the number fifteen jersey and joined Oran Bryce and Innes Fraser on the substitutes bench.
The hosts got off to a perfect start taking full advantage of a breakdown in communication in the Saints' defence in just the second minute. Rhys Millar conceded a free-kick on the halfway line which the Saints' defence and goalkeeper Graham Douglas failed to deal with leaving Port fullback Robert Payne unmarked to loop a header into the unguarded net.
With the breeze and slope in their favour Port Glasgow were making all the early running and Saints had Graham Douglas to thank for a fine save to his right to push away a Bradley Anderson header from a tenth minute corner kick.
At the other end Port Keeper Stuart Burns was very much on his toes to race out to the edge of his box and head clear a David Beaton through ball with Connor Moore closing in at full speed.
Manager Ross Maitland's selection options were given a welcome boost when Aaron McKay declared himself available on the eve of the match and the combative midfielder's battling qualities proved vital on the tight grass park at Parklea. McKay registered Saints' first attempt on goal with a twenty-second minute shot which slipped wide of the Port keeper's left-hand post.
The hosts had the ball in the net for a second time sixty seconds later when John Paterson slotted past Graham Douglas after a defence splitting pass from Jamie McKay however Referee Donald McCallum, who handled proceedings well, correctly spotted that Paterson has strayed into an offside position.
Good pressing in midfield from Alec McInroy set Connor Moore on his way to win a twenty-sixth minute corner kick as Saints started to exert some influence in the attacking third. David Beaton's delivery to the far post was headed back to the edge of the box by Donald Campbell from where Connor Beattie fired a shot over the Port crossbar.
Aaron followed suit two minutes later before Saints forced a flurry of corner kicks which the home defence successfully repelled.
Saints were harshly punished for taking nothing from their best spell in the match thus far when Jamie McKay beat Keiron Lopez to a ball over the top and squared to John Paterson for a simple tap-in at the back post on the half-hour mark.
Saints however quickly bounced back when Connor Moore extended his lead at the top of the Saints' goalscoring chart two minutes later cleverly finding the gap between Port keeper Stuart Burns and central defender Edward Walton to head Aaron McKay's free-kick into the bottom corner.
Sixty seconds after the restart Aaron McKay was again the provider picking out Rhys Millar on the corner of the Port eighteen-yard box who controlled well but couldn't generate enough power in his shot to seriously trouble Stuart Burns.
As Saints looked to end the first half on a high Donald Campbell curled a right foot effort wide of target before David Beaton rattled the post with a sweetly struck volley from a Connor Moore cross from the right.
Saints threatened early in the second half with Port keeper Stuart Burns showing safe hands to hold a Connor Beattie shot from the edge of the box from a David Beaton corner kick.
The aerial route almost proved successful again for the hosts when Bradley Anderson flicked-on Robert Payne's fifty-first minute free-kick for John Paterson who fired a good chance wide of Graham Douglas' right-hand post.
Saints drew level in sensational style after fifty-nine minutes when Connor Moore and Alec McInroy combined to tee up David Beaton. Moore chased down an Aaron McKay long ball on the right and laid the ball back to Alec McInroy. McInroy picked out David Beaton's run into the inside right channel from where Beaton's beautifully struck shot arrowed into the net past the motionless Port keeper.
Keeping himself in reserve in case of emergency, Ross Maitland sent on substitutes Oran Bryce and Innes Fraser to replace Connor Beattie and Alec McInroy for the closing stages.
Port almost exploited the ball over the top again when Jamie McKay raced onto a Scott Payne pass with Graham Douglas doing well to narrow the angle and hold McKay's effort.
From a similar distance to his earlier equalising goal, David Beaton tried his luck with the dead ball after Aaron McKay had been brought down but this time could only find the gloves of Stuart Burns. Saints were slow to retreat and the big keeper's kick from hands was chased by Jamie McKay on the Port right and cut back to John Paterson who gleefully put the home side back in front with eighteen minutes remaining.
Saints had it all to do again but were getting little change out of the experienced Port defence. Home Skipper Thomas Wilson's foul on Rhys Millar twenty-eight yards out gave David Beaton another free-kick opportunity. Beaton this time succeeded in beating Stuart Burns but failed to hit the target sending his effort six inches wide of Burns' right-hand post.
The young Saints stuck to their task and got their reward with two of the regulation ninety minutes remaining. Aaron McKay's tenacity in the middle of the park was key in the build-up as was his pass into the stride of Rhys Millar. The young striker was able to pull away from Port fullback Paul Payne and head for the corner of the six-yard box from where, despite a desperate lunge from Thomas Wilson, he was able to find the far corner of the net.
It was end to end action in the seven additional minutes allowed by Referee McCallum but both defences stood firm with Aidan Jackson impressive in safely marshalling young colleagues Keiron Lopez and Keiran Griffin in the Saints back three.
The Scottish Premier Amateur Football Association Premiership takes an Easter break this coming Saturday with Saints back on home turf on Saturday 26th April for the visit of old rival Greenock High School Former Pupils.
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