NEWCRAIGHALL Leith Vics sent Broughty United back over the silvery Tay with a crushing late double that sees the Capital side continue their quest for silverware in the Scottish Amateur Cup.
The hosts completed a breathtaking 3-2 comeback win after falling two goals behind to their Dundee visitors within the opening 15 minutes, leaving it late to hit goals in the 78th, 88th and 92nd minutes to usurp United.
With the promise of a
post-match meal at Joppa's Seahaven Hotel, Broughty must have had their minds on some satisfying stovies before a happy return north but instead contrived to choke in the latter stages of the match for a result that left them with a bitter taste.
Vics' club leader Kevin Millar was happy to come out on top after a tough contest. "I thought the character and the fight from the boys was brilliant," he said. "Quite often, we're the last team in Edinburgh remaining in the Scottish Cup, and three or four years ago we got to the last eight, which is something we'd love to do again.
"The Scottish is really difficult to win – it's the biggest cup competition in football in this country and you have to play about ten or 11 games to reach the final."
Perhaps fear of an end to their cup run was the impetus for Vics' resurgence in the final 15 minutes, but in the opening stages it looked as though Broughty would have little problem in reaching the fourth round.
With Vics goalkeeper Craig Bryce showing indecision at a lobbed ball into his penalty area, Broughty's spritely young striker Mark Hodlin lifted a shot over a stranded Bryce from 15 yards to score. Five minutes later, on just the second occasion in which play had entered the Vics penalty area, Broughty again punished their opponents' slack defence and doubled their lead. A cross from the left eluded a clutch of players around the penalty spot and when the ball fell to Hodlin at the far post the striker had two or three seconds to weigh up his options and compose himself before blasting a shot into the top right-hand corner.
Home keeper Bryce, who endured a torrid opening stage, nearly gifted a third to Broughty two minutes later but, after failing to reach Gary Dempster's cross from the left, he was lucky that Hodlin's headed flick over him also cleared the crossbar by a narrow margin.
Newcraighall then enjoyed further good fortune when referee Stuart Johnstone looked favourably on a clumsy challenge by defender Ross Macrae on Broughty's Alan Craig inside the box on the half-hour mark.
The home side proceeded to create a number of chances towards the close of the first half, Paul Armstrong with an angled drive and an Andrew Dailly header that was cleared off the line.
At the other end, Bryce went some way to atoning for his previous mishaps with a superb low dive to thwart Jack English, whose half-volley from the edge of the penalty area looked to be creeping into the net.
Newcraighall striker Steven Igoe was displeased at being withdrawn from the Vics comeback effort on the hour, a substitution that perhaps seemed odd given that the home side's No.11 had come closest to scoring after half-time with a firm strike from the right that was beaten away by Broughty goalie Ally Craigie.
The introduction of some older heads to the Vics line-up was to prove a masterstroke, though, and Igoe's replacement Evan Watson was in the thick of the action as the green machine piled forward in search of a way back into the match.
Watson's whipped cross from the right on 76 minutes found fellow sub Mark Ballantyne, but with his first touch the No.16's header flew just wide.
A similar move on the same flank two minutes later was more productive and saw Hughes as the provider.
Captain Dailly was in a great position to meet the cross with a swing of the boot and sent the ball into the bottom right-hand corner.
With just a goal in it, the main turning point in the fortunes of both teams could be attributed to a gilt-edged opportunity spurned by Broughty's Richard Soutar on 84 minutes, when the substitute shot wide with the goal at his mercy. Four minutes later it was all square, the relentless Hughes reaching a cross at the far post to prod the ball into the net and allow the striker a momentary goading of his nemesis Callum Cox, the Broughty defender who had done his best to block the efforts of Vics' No.9 all afternoon.
Cox and his team-mates were further undone by a rampant Vics two minutes into injury time. Hughes held up the ball brilliantly deep inside the Broughty penalty area and when he cut the ball back onto the edge of the six-yard box Jonathon Morrice was the quickest to react and delivered the game's final, killer blow.
Newcraighall LV: Craig Bryce, Ross Macrae, Paul Waugh, David Bauld, Jonathon Morrice, Andrew Dailly, Paul Armstrong, Nicky Combe, Martin Hughes, Gary Walker, Steven Igoe, Dan Scott, Kevin Wood, Evan Watson, Mark Ballantyne, Kevin Smith.
Broughty United: Ally Craigie, Gordon Howie, Gary Dempster, James Dunn, Callum Cox, Scott Howie, Jack English, Mark McGuire, Alan Craig, Mark Gollan, Mark Hodlin, Richard Soutar, Bobby Robertson, Stuart Black, Ali Griele.
