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It certainly has been a funny old year for Bo'ness. Briefly looking like genuine championship contenders, getting the better of high-flying rivals Linlithgow, Whitburn and Newtongrange over their meetings this season...and then, by contrast, a series of unlikely cup exits and league points lost against clubs threatened by relegation.
Nearly relegated Bathgate, Second Division Musselburgh, Fife side Lochore - all three have eliminated Bo'ness from cup competitions this season, and all at home. Strange when one considers the imperious home form of the BUs in the league (eight wins from eleven, and a single defeat some eight months ago), which was enough to generate some optimism that there might be a cup final against local rivals Linlithgow just around the corner. Optimism is, of course, the preserve of fools, but avoiding it was difficult as the sun shone brightly on this semi-final against Harthill - yes, virtually relegated Harthill - and the first half cautiously suggested that a Bo'ness goal was indeed coming.
After four minutes, Paul McKinlay, who had earlier been presented with a bottle of wine for breaking Jimmy Burns' all-time scoring record for Bo'ness just a week earlier, might have tucked home a cross, but saw his tap-in blocked by a defender. McKinlay was denied again, this time by a fine save, by the diving Harthill goalkeeper with 26 minutes played, and Colin
Campbell might have broken the deadlock a couple of minutes afterwards, but shot too close to the goalkeeper. Gary Smith, like Jamie Loney and Kevin Inglis, was creating trouble when running at the visitors' defence, and forced a good save with his low drive from 25 yards. Amidst all this, Harthill had only looked dangerous in the fourteenth minute, when their No. 9 dragged his shot wide of Neil Binnie's right-hand post having evaded the offside trap.
Ah, but no. Playing better has never guaranteed Bo'ness victories this season, and those home supporters who stayed indoors to watch the English FA Cup Final on television had their decision vindicated by a three minute spell just before the hour mark which effectively finished the game. Davie King's poor defensive header forced Brian Kemp into giving away a throw in dangerous territory, and the resulting Harthill cross was neatly knocked past Binnie, who was yet to produce a save. With 60 minutes played, goalkeeper and defender struggled to clear another effort, and the rebound was swept home by a lurking Harthill forward.
Still the BUs might have forced their way back into the game, but missed a couple of gilt-edged opportunities at 2-0 down, of which the better was a McKinlay effort from ten yards superbly smothered by the Harthill goalkeeper.
The heads went down for the home team, but there was worse to come. The head of Harthill's third goalscorer went up, from all of 40 yards, to spot Binnie rather too far off his line. An audacious effort sailed over the stranded goalkeeper - Harthill's fifth, maybe sixth, shot in total, and their third goal.
By the time King was red carded for a professional foul in stoppage time, it mattered little. For all the BUs' huffing and puffing, for all their possession and territorial dominance, the game was over after an hour. Harthill had done their job splendidly - presumably better than they have for most of the rest of the season - and will now look forward to a cup final. For Bo'ness, a second straight barren season.
Bo'ness: Binnie; Smith, King, Ryan (Black), Yates, Kemp, K Inglis, Drew (Hodge), McKinlay, Campbell, Loney
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