2002 Scottish Challenge Cup final
Event | 2002–03 Scottish Challenge Cup | ||||||
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Date | 20 October 2002 | ||||||
Venue | Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld | ||||||
Referee | J. R. Underhill | ||||||
Attendance | 6,428 | ||||||
The 2002 Scottish Challenge Cup final, also known as the Bell's Cup final for sponsorship reasons,[1] was an association football match between Brechin City and Queen of the South on 20 October 2002 at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld. It was the 12th final of the Scottish Challenge Cup since it was first organised in 1990 to celebrate the centenary of the Scottish Football League.
Both teams progressed through four knock-out rounds to reach the final. The match was Brechin City's first national cup final in its 96-year history whilst it was Queen of the South's second appearance in the final of the tournament having lost in 1997. The tournament was contested by clubs below the Scottish Premier League; Queen of the South from the First Division and Brechin City from the Second Division.
Queen of the South dominated most of the game with
Route to the final
The competition is a knock-out tournament and in 2002 was contested by the 30 teams that played in the First, Second and Third Divisions of the Scottish Football League. Teams were paired at random and the winner of each match progressed to the next round and the loser was eliminated. The first round was contested by 28 of the teams and two received random byes into the second round.[2]
Brechin City
Round | Opposition | Score |
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First round | Elgin City (a) | 4–1 |
Second round | St Johnstone (h) | 3–2 |
Quarter-final | Falkirk (h) | 1–1 ( a.e.t.) )
(5–3 pens. |
Semi-final | Queen's Park (a) | 4–3 |
Brechin City entered the first round and were drawn to play Elgin City of the Third Division at Borough Briggs.[3] Elgin took the lead in the 31st minute with a goal from David Ross but was short-lived; Chris Templeman equalised the score to 1–1 ten minutes later and Marc Millar scored early in the second half to give Brechin a 2–1 lead. Two minutes later, Templeman scored his second goal of the game and Charlie King concluded the win with a goal in the 90th minute to make it 4–1 and progress to the next round.[4] Brechin played First Division club St Johnstone in the second round at home at Glebe Park.[5] Grant Murray scored first for St Johnstone after seven minutes to take a 1–0 lead. Roddy Grant equalised for Brechin against his former club on 35 minutes before Peter MacDonald scored for St Johnstone to regain a 2–1 lead two minutes before half time. Brechin scored two goals in the second half; an own goal by Darren Dods and a second goal from Grant to produce a "shock"[6] 3–2 win and advance to the quarter-finals.[6]
In the quarter-finals, Brechin faced another home game against a First Division club, this time against Falkirk.
Queen of the South
Round | Opposition | Score |
---|---|---|
First round | Peterhead (a) | 2–0 |
Second round | Greenock Morton (h) | 1–0 |
Quarter-final | Dumbarton (h) | 2–0 |
Semi-final | St Mirren (a) | 5–3 |
Queen of the South also entered the first round and were drawn to play Third Division club Peterhead away from home at
In the quarter-finals, Queen of the South played Second Division club Dumbarton, also at Palmerston Park. John O'Neill scored his second goal of the tournament to give Queen of the South the lead after 25 minutes.
Pre-match
Venue
The 2002 final was hosted at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld which had been Clyde's home since it was opened in 1994. The stadium hosted the final on three previous occasions;[21] twice in the past two seasons and for the first time in 1996. The venue had a capacity of 8,000 and 4,500 tickets were allocated to Queen of the South who had a larger fan base and average home support than Brechin City, who were allocated around 2,500 tickets.[22] Dumfries-based Queen of the South travelled approximately 77 miles (123.9 km)[23] to the venue whereas Brechin City travelled around 94 miles (151.3 km).[24]
Analysis
In order to reach the final, both Brechin City and Queen of the South played two matches at home and two away. Brechin scored twelve goals and conceded seven compared with Queen of the South's ten goals scored and only three conceded. Queen of the South kept a
Brechin and Queen of the South were both aiming to win their second trophy in less than six months, having been crowned champions of the Third and Second Divisions respectively the previous season.[21] Despite recent league success, Brechin had never reached the final of a national cup competition in its 96-year history whilst Queen of the South were making only their second appearance in a cup final since losing the 1997 final to Falkirk in the same competition.
Match
First half
Queen of the South started the game as the livelier team, pushing forward early on; however, Brechin City had the first goal scoring opportunity of the final when Graham Gibson's long range shot was saved by Queen of the South goalkeeper Andy Goram.[29] Peter Weatherson had a similar opportunity for Queen of the South after a pass from Derek Lyle but was also saved by Brechin's goalkeeper, David Hay.[29] Hay made another save 10 minutes later after another Weatherson attempt from Steve Bowey's pass. After 28 minutes, Brechin player Chris Jackson was booked for a foul on Bowey and Queen of the South scored the first goal of the game shortly after in the 33rd minute but with controversy; John O'Neill rebounded the ball into the goal after Bowey's initial shot was saved by the goalkeeper but Brechin defender Greg McCulloch claimed to have cleared the ball off the line, however, referee John Underhill awarded the goal.[29] Weatherson almost scored again shortly before half time when he headed the ball into goalkeeper Hay's hands after a Robbie Neilson cross.[29]
Second half
From the beginning of the second half the match was dominated by Queen of the South and they extended their lead after only two minutes. Defender
Details
Brechin City
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Queen of the South
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Match rules
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Post-match
Queen of the South goalkeeper Colin Scott, who had played in all rounds before the final, was ruled out of playing because of injury.[21] However, manager John Connolly stated that he would not have played Scott even if he had been fully fit and opted with Andy Goram instead, saying: "I was not convinced of Colin's fitness",[31] and "I told Colin there was never a chance of him playing in the Cup final".[32] As a result of Goram's inclusion in the squad, he became the first player to win every domestic trophy in Scotland.[32]
The match remains Brechin City's only appearance in a major national cup final. However, Queen of the South have made two further appearances in the final of the tournament since the match; losing to
Notes
- 1. ^ The match was scheduled to kick off at 15:00 (GMT) but was delayed by ten minutes to allow time for spectators delayed by traffic congestion to enter the stadium and take their seats.[31]
References
- ^ Bell's Cup, scottishfootballleague.com. Scottish Football League. 2 November 2005. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Clyde Receive 'Bells' Bye To 2nd Round, clydefc.co.uk. Clyde F.C. 11 July 2002. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
- ^ Elgin City v Brechin City – Scottish League Challenge Cup 6/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
- ^ Elgin 1–4 Brechin, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 6 August 2002. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
- ^ Brechin City v St Johnstone – Scottish League Challenge Cup 14/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ a b Brechin City 3–2 St Johnstone, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 14 August 2002. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Brechin City v Falkirk – Scottish League Challenge Cup 20/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Brechin 1–1 Falkirk (5–3 on pen), news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 20 August 2002. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Queen's Park v Brechin City – Scottish League Challenge Cup 27/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ a b Bell's final tolls for City Archived 16 June 2013 at archive.today, brechinadvertiser.co.uk. Brechin Advertiser. 28 August 2002. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Queen's Park 3–4 Brechin, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 27 August 2002. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
- ^ Peterhead v Queen of the South – Scottish League Challenge Cup 6/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Peterhead 0–2 Queen of the South, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 6 August 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Queen of the South v Greenock Morton – Scottish League Challenge Cup 13/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Queen of the South 1–0 Morton, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 12 August 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Morton launch O'Connor inquiry, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 15 August 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Queen of the South v Dumbarton – Scottish League Challenge Cup 20/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ QoS 2–0 Dumbarton, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 20 August 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ St Mirren v Queen of the South – Scottish League Challenge Cup 27/8/2002, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ St Mirren 3–5 Queen of the South, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 27 August 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f Haggerty, Anthony. "Football: Oueen Sweep For Goram; Queen of the South 2 Brechin City 0", Daily Record (Glasgow), 21 October 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Book Your Final Seat Archived 16 June 2013 at archive.today, brechinadvertiser.co.uk. Brechin Advertiser. 19 September 2002. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ^ Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway, UK to Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire, UK, maps.google.co.uk. Google Maps. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ Brechin, Angus, UK to Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire, UK, maps.google.co.uk. Google Maps. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ Scottish League Challenge Cup 2002/03, soccerbase.com, Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ^ Queen of the South 2002–2003 : Scottish Division One Table on 19.10.2002 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, statto.com, Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ^ Brechin City 2002–2003 : Scottish Division Two Table on 19.10.2002 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, statto.com, Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ^ Scottish League Challenge Cup Stats: Top Goal Scorers – 2002/03, espnfc.com. ESPN FC. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f Queen of the South lift Bells Cup, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 20 October 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- ^ Scottish League Challenge Cup Final Results – 2002/03 Archived 26 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine, ESPN Soccernet. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
- ^ a b Irvine, Neil. Bell's Challenge Cup Final: Historic day for Dumfries revellers, telegraph.co.uk. The Telegraph. 21 October 2002. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
- ^ a b Haggerty, Anthony. "Football: It's Broad smiles for the Goalie", Daily Record (Glasgow), 21 October 2002. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
- Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
- ^ Lindsay, Clive. Queen of the South 2–3 Rangers, news.bbc.co.uk. BBC Sport. 24 May 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2013.