McBookie Ayrshire District League

WHITLETTS VICTORIA 2

MUIRKIRK 0

GOALS in each half from Jordan Mullen and Declan Milligan gave Vics three vital league points in their quest for promotion in this hard-fought encounter against Muirkirk.

Nine weeks after taking over the hot seat, Grierson finally got to see his side play at Dam Park and was satisfied with the outcome that kept his unbeaten run since intact since he joined the club to keep the club's promotion ambitions very much alive.

Whitletts looked a bit ring rusty at the start following their five-week lay-off due to the weather and it was Muirkirk who started the brighter. The visitors had a claim for a penalty waved aside in the eighth minute when Jordan Conlan looked to have been tripped inside the box but referee Ross Clark wasn’t interested in their appeals. Two minutes later Yamikani Misanjo fired just wide from the edge of the box.

In 18 minutes, Vics were awarded a free kick deep inside the Muirkirk half and while the match official was showing a yellow card to ‘Kirk’s Stephen Campbell, he didn’t see a blatant elbow to the face by visiting defender Jay Burns on Graeme Barbour that floored the Vics striker. However from the free-kick the hosts exacted the perfect response as Craig Fisher’s cross was side-footed home by Jordan Mullen from six yards.

Whitletts began to grow into the game and Adam Forsyth got on the end of a perfectly flighted Declan Milligan cross but could only head straight at 'Kirk goalie Nathan Bogle.

Six minutes into the second half Vics should have had a penalty when goalscorer Mullen took the ball past a defender as Kirk failed to properly clear a corner, only to be brought down with just the keeper to beat. It looked a stonewall penalty but referee Ross Clark not only waved aside appeals, he chose to book the Vics defender for diving!

Vics were in control and always looked the more likelier to add to their tally. Bogle denied Forsyth at full stretch with a shot from the edge of the box.

Forsyth was desperate to get his name on the scoresheet but it just wasn’t to be his day. When Barbour did well to win possession in midfield, Josh Sloan released the Vics striker but as he tried to take the ball round the keeper, Bogle dived to claim it with an outstretch arm.

Forsyth was then put through on another one-on-one with the keeper but appeared to get caught in two minds and collided with Bogle, who had raced outside his area but in 69 minutes Vics increased their lead with a sublime finish from Declan Milligan. As he ran onto a Jordan Boyd pass, Milligan took the ball past a defender and as Bogle raced from the goal-line, from an angle the Vics’ player chipped the ball over the advancing keeper and into the net, despite a great effort from Kirk defender Maxime Neossi to clear the ball off the line.

It was Milligan’s first goal for the club and capped a fine afternoon for the Vics midfielder.

From that moment on the destination of the points was never in doubt as Vics ran out comfortable victors.

WHITLETTS VICTORIA: Fraser; Anderson, Boyd, McMullen, I Kerr, Buchanan, Fisher, Milligan (McClymont 77) Forsyth, Barbour, Sloan

Subs not used: L Kerr, Dempsey, Ogston, L Kerr (gk).

MUIRKIRK: Bogle; Baxter, Peck, Burns (Murray 87) Steedman, Conlon (Hunter 74) Macdonald, Misanjo (Macaulay 79) Campbell, Murray, Neossi

Subs not used: Roberts, Cunningham, Carslaw.