Third time lucky for Greenock
Gary Pews • Published 9 Dec 2011 13:00
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GREENOCK Juniors' festive break could be interrupted, as the saga of their Scottish Cup tie against Bellshill Athletic threatens to rumble on.
A third attempt will be made to play the tie at Fullarton Park in Glasgow tomorrow, but reports from the area suggest the prospects of it going ahead are no better than they were last week, when the match was called off as early as Friday evening.
And the SJFA have now confirmed that the 'three strikes' rule will not apply to this match, at least for the time being.
The rule would normally order the home club to play a Scottish Cup tie at a neutral venue after three unsuccessful attempts to play it at their home ground.
But SJFA secretary Tom Johnston said: "It is not a hard and fast rule and depends on the circumstances at the time.
"Obviously there were a great many matches postponed last week through no fault of the home clubs, so unless the likes of the Bellshill-Greenock tie was one of only a few holding up the progress of the tournament, we would look sympathetically at their situation."
Greenock had planned to take the festive break and not apply for any league games on the Saturdays 24 and 31 December, but with the fourth round draw for the Scottish Cup due to take place next Thursday, they could be forced to play the Bellshill match on one of those dates, if the tie is not resolved before then.
Manager Stevie Mooney admits it is not an ideal scenario.
He said: "That would not be fair on the boys but it has happened elsewhere, so we are anxious to play the tie as soon as possible.
"The uncertainty makes it difficult to focus, but we just have to keep training so that we are ready to play whenever the game gets the go-ahead."
That training was limited to just one session this week, with Monday's stint cancelled due to snow, as the elements continue to throw everything at Greenock in what is shaping up to be another frustrating end to the year.
In the unlikely event of tomorrow's match going ahead, kick-off at Fullarton Park in Tollcross is scheduled for 1.45pm.
l Greenock Juniors are sponsored by Regents Vehicle Sales, Greenock, and the Lighthouse Bar.
This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 09 Dec 11
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