AUFA report

Published 9 Mar 2010 11:27 0 Comments

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SFL Youth Division - Under 17's

Queen of the South 2 Ayr United 3

Ayr United under 17 side travelled down to Islecroft Stadium in Dalbeattie to play against Queen of the South and they came away with what will be seen as a vital three points, after a thrilling encounter against their rivals.

Keeper Ryan Jeffries was put under immense amounts of pressure throughout the game and if it wasn't for Ayr's last line of defence, the score could have been a lot worse. The first 20 minutes of the game seen the Ayr defence under the cosh, but they managed to break out and started to string a few passes together.

After withstanding the pressure from the home side Ayr managed to get their noses in front when Lee Lockhart put a quality pass through the middle of the home sides defence, which landed up at the feet of Marc Dyer who rounded the home sides keeper and slotted away to give the Under 17's the lead.

The goal gave Ayr a greater sense of confidence with strikers Dyer and Scott Johnston showing a lot of confidence during the 90 minutes as they looked for another goal. Both sides continued to press forward but neither could find the back of the net before the interval.

After the break Queen of the South looked to get back into the game, pressing the Ayr defence on several occasions. They were ultimately rewarded for their persistence, when after ten minutes into the second half they were rewarded a free kick, which was expertly dispatched beyond Jeffries to bring Queens back on level terms.

The goal spurned Ayr into action as a result and they were unlucky not to get back into the lead when Johnston slammed a volley from outside the area, just over the bar. But it was only going to take a while until Ayr got back in front, after a corner from the right saw Alan Murdoch try to get a shot off, but he could not do so, but Dyer was there waiting to slam the ball home from close in.

Ayr could not keep a hold of the lead for very long, as Queens ran forward, scoring a goal from close in to get themselves back on level terms. The home side continued to press after the goal, looking to get themselves the lead for the first time during the game.

But with five minutes left on the clock, Ayr got the lead for the third time and sealed the game as a contest when Captain Shaun Kelly ran in from the right hand side and place the ball beyond the Queens keeper at the near post to give the visitors all three points.

The under 17s could have extended the lead even further with just a minute left when Dyer played the ball to Allan Paterson, but he failed to find the net from close in. Late into injury Ayr were extremely lucky to walk away with the three points when Queens put the ball in the net, but were disappointed to see the linesman with his flag raised for offside.

After the victory Coach Allan Paul said: "It was a great game to be involved in and both teams were a complete credit to their clubs. Queens's front pairing probably one of the best on show all season, however our defence coped well enough to help earn their win. The team was great all round with everyone working hard for the whole match, showing great character and determination each time they got pegged back and we got a thoroughly deserved and well earned 3 points."

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