Match Report

A fourth consecutive win for the Warriors and a first half hat trick to top off a perfect Stenny Saturday.

Both sides struggled to get going in the opening stages of the half, but the Warriors soon rectified that with an extremely dominant display.

Corey O’Donnell, who has found fine form in front of goal, didn’t let that falter and made sure to collect the match ball with a first career hat trick, though even Corey admitted that “it’s not the prettiest hat trick you’ve ever seen!”

The young striker’s first goal came in the 22nd minute after Alston laid off a great ball to O’Donnell who drilled it low into the net to give the Warriors the lead. 0-1.

Dumbarton began to look shaky in the 31st minute and that only fuelled the Warrior’s intensity. A disastrous mix up at the back gifted another goal scoring opportunity to the Warriors. A short pass back forced the Dumbarton keeper to clear quickly, but not before tenacious work from O’Donnell caused the ball to be rattled off him. This poor attempt at a clearance from the keeper resulted in the ball slowly trickling into the net. 0-2.

It was clear to everyone in the stadium that O’Donnell had fire in his belly and was keen to gain that all important hat trick and he didn’t  have to wait long to deliver. In the 41st minute, Taylor’s beautifully swung in cross was met by the head of O’Donnell, however, his original effort ricocheted off the bar, but on second attempt he headed the effort easily past the Dumbarton keeper, who was on the ground in the back of the net with the ball. 0-3.

It was a stellar first half performance that had the away support rocking and rightfully so. This was a hat trick hero performance that earned the Warriors their highest scoring first half of the season.

The second half performance dropped off slightly, but the Warriors still maintained their lead and are continuing their challenge at the top end of the table.

The only opportunity of the game for Dumbarton came in the second half just 9 minutes after the restart when Pignatiello curled his effort into the net. 1-3. This sliver of hope was short lived for the hosts as they failed to create anything further.

Another brilliant victory on the road for the Warriors kicks off our three games away from home. We travel to Annan next weekend on the prowl for another away win, please make sure you join us there to support the team. Stay up to date via all our social media channels.

Match Report by Louise Davidson

Photographs by Thomas Gorman and Kristopher Dowell

Preview

Warriors, this weekend we are on the road for our first of three consecutive away days, and we are kicking it off with a trip to Dumbarton.

After a monumental win against Arbroath last weekend, manager Gary Naysmith stressed the importance in taking that intensity into the game ahead:

“We go into Saturday’s game full of confidence on the back of last week’s result and performance, but we are also very aware that we must not become complacent in any aspects of our game if we are to try and win a 4th league game in a row.”

We have had a turbulent time when we take on Dumbarton away, having only beaten them 11 times out of a possible 24 meetings at the Marbill Coaches Stadium. In recent years our luck has changed though, and this season we have had major scores when we faced the Glasgow side.

The Warriors last faced Dumbarton before Christmas and eased to a 4-0 victory, with Yates grabbing himself a hat trick and Steele on the scoresheet as well. Yates who has 5 goals and 9 assists in the league will be aiming for a repeat on Saturday.

With this fixture on the horizon, it is only right to have a throwback to 2003 when we first defeated Dumbarton away in League 1. An extremely late winner was scored by Martin Harty in the 89th minute that day to seal three points.

Warriors, 22 years later, and we hopefully won’t have to wait until the 89th minute to see another goal. Dumbarton however, will be eager to have a solid showing on their home turf, but the The Sons have gone without a win in 6 league games. The Warriors, on the other hand, are looking to make it 4 wins on the bounce.

Please make sure you join us in full force at the weekend to support Gary and the boys. Stay up to date via all our social media channels.

Kick off: 3rd March at 3pm

Location: Marbill Coaches Stadium

Match preview by Louise Davidson