Late, late twist at 'Soif' stuns Saints
LEON MEAKIN was shaken, opposite number Kevin Gillease dazed by disbelief as the rival coaches attempted to digest a stunning, unpredictable finish to the big FNB Priaulx League clash at Port Soif.
Into stoppage time Saints were 2-1 ahead and destined to make it eight straight wins, at the same time serving Rovers with a second defeat.
But in the space of 60 remarkable seconds, Fin Whitmore rocketed Rovers level with a shot that would have reached Cobo Post Office had the net not been there to stop it, and Blair Howitt tapped home a close-range winner.
While admitting his side’s rub of the green this season had suddenly turned against them, Saints’ Leon Meakin could hardly believe they had lost.
‘We were the better side for all but the last two minutes,’ he groaned.
Gillease, whose largely home-sprung Rovers side have closed to within three points of Saints with a game in hand, admitted he thought the match was lost.
‘It couldn’t have worked out any better really.
‘We looked at the clock and there was 10 [minutes] left and we went with three up top. We just went for it, we had nothing to lose at 2-1 down.’
As for Whitmore’s goal?
‘What a strike. I was right behind it as well. As soon as it left his boot I knew it was in.’
Skipper Tom Strawbridge did not see the turnaround coming.
‘The last few minutes of a game you always have a chance of one opportunity to scrape a point, but to go and get another a minute later was incredible. Honestly, I thought we’d struggle to get a point because they had worked really hard at the back and made it really hard for us all game.
‘But we kept plugging away and it wasn’t particularly pretty in the second half but we we worked hard for it.
‘It makes it very interesting and that’s what we [all] want, a competitive Priaulx League.’
Match report in Monday's Guernsey Press.
