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Bo'ness were slightly unfortunate losers in Jimmy Sandison's first game as United coach, their first game of the new season and semi-final of the four team pre-season friendly tournament at Bathgate. The BUs, with several new faces in the team, had looked the better side for the first hour of this contest but had to come from behind twice through Graeme Donald and Gordon Abbott, before fading in the final half hour.
The hosts took the lead after just nine minutes, when the ball broke kindly for a forward after a scramble involving new defensive addition Martin on the edge of the area. With the rest of the BU defence struggling to get back into position, the forward had plenty of time to pick his spot, and duly placed the ball superbly in the goalkeeper's top left hand corner, giving new 'keeper Mark Cairn no chance.
Bo'ness might have equalised a minute later, David Muirhead sending Abbott through on the right side of the penalty area with an excellent pass, but though Abbott was able to knock the ball beyond the goalkeeper, a defender was able to get back and clear before the ball bounced into the net. It was a positive response to the loss of the goal, and the visitors kept up the pressure, nearly finding a breakthrough five minutes later, but none of the forwards were able to turn in an inviting cross from Mark Struthers from the right. With 23 minutes gone Bo'ness came closer still - Gary Smith's powerful header from a corner being blocked on the line, then John Jeffrey's attempt to put home the rebound from six yards was deflected wide for another corner.
With Bo'ness, the scoreline notwithstanding, looking the better team in the opening stages, Bathgate had frequently been resorting to a somewhat unfriendly approach in this friendly, a series of niggly fouls going unpunished by a referee unwilling to pull out cards in such a game. This reached a farcical point after half an hour, when Abbott was shoved to the ground by the Bathgate No.4 - a red card offence in any other game, but the referee opted to keep it at eleven-a-side by obliging Bathgate to substitute the offender. The logical outcome of such an approach, of giving carte blanche to foul, was the continuation of a dirty, if not quite violent, game for the remainder of the ninety minutes.
Four minutes after this episode Bo'ness deservedly pulled level, Martin Mooney pumping a high ball to the edge of the box which should have been claimed by the trialist Bathgate 'keeper. But he hesitated, and Donald stole in to head past the stranded 'keeper and into the net.
Level at half-time, Bo'ness, the team creating nearly all the chances, should have felt confident going into the second period. Another gaffe nearly allowed them to take the lead six minutes after the restart, when Jeffrey robbed the goalkeeper outside his box, knocking the ball back to Mooney who hesitated before himself being dispossessed. The ball broke back to Jeffrey, but the goalkeeper, having got back to his goal, made a good save to tip the eventual shot from twenty yards over the bar.
A let-off for Bathgate, and they took full advantage by re-taking the lead two minutes later - their No.7 taking the ball for a run in the Bo'ness half, and with the defence criminally backing off, he was able to hit a sweet low shot from around 25 yards into Cairn's bottom right corner.
The away side were quickly level, however. Abbott was released by Mooney's precise through ball, correctly ruled onside with a defender lagging yards behind his team mates, and produced a measured finish across goal from the right side of the penalty area.
Bathgate responded superbly to this set-back. Having played second fiddle for almost two-thirds of the game, they now assumed control of the contest, dominating the middle of the park. The experimental BU defence had appeared questionable even when not under pressure in the first period, and now looked distinctly vulnerable under pressure. Nevertheless, it took a belter of a shot to clinch victory, the home team's No.10 producing a fierce volley across goal from 20 yards out which Cairn was able to get a hand to, but unable to keep out. It was only Bathgate's third effort on target, and their third goal from outside the box.
Fourteen minutes from time Dean McPherson fired off an excellent shot from almost the same position at the other end, but the trialist goalkeeper, unimpressive so far, produced a quite magnificent save, leaping high to his left to tip away a strike which looked destined for the top corner.
In a very disappointing final half hour, that was as close as Bo'ness came to equalising, and the home side ended the game very much the better team. The defeat set up a meeting with Whitburn in the tournament's 3rd/4th place match, earlier beaten 1-0 by Armadale.
Bo'ness United starting eleven: Cairn; Smith , Burroughs, Martin, Donald, McPherson, Struthers, Mooney, Abbott, Jeffrey, Muirhead