Lothian Thistle 1

Peebles Rovers 0

Neil Hobson

at Saughton Enclosure

SENDING-OFFS, a controversial goal, and talking points a-plenty, this was East of Scotland football showcased in all its glory.

But that word certainly won't be sticking in the vocabulary of Gerry Rossi and his Peebles Rovers team, as they failed to capitalize on a two-man advantage in what was often a fiery and tense encounter at Saughton Enclosure.

The Whitestone men travelled to the capital off the back of a three-game winning run that culminated in a 7-2 humiliation of Tweedmouth Rangers.

But a 1-0 defeat, courtesy of a Grant Munro header ten-minutes from time, sees Peebles slip down the table to 8th.

The match kicked-off in a typically frantic style; with both teams looking to imprint their style of play on proceedings early on.

Alan McMath and Jason Newell looked to exploit defensive holes in the capital club's back-four early on, with the two linking-up well in the first five minutes to gently pepper the keeper with shots.

Madness soon descended upon Saughton, however, as Lothian were reduced to nine-men.

Tempers flared between the sides following a horror challenge by Crawford on Peebles forward, Robbie Renwick.

A furious argument erupted as both teams found themselves locked in a war of words and shoving.

The first red was brandished for the challenge, but a second was flashed after Mackenzie shoved Rossi in the face - leaving the Rovers rubbing their hands in glee at the notion of a two-man advantage.

But, and this was to prove to be the defining aspect of this game, this only seemed to fire up the capital club even more

The first-half proved to be a decidedly scrappy and turgid affair, with Peebles struggling to cope with the renewed intensity of the home side.

Zavaroni and Renwick attempted to work the wide-areas, but with two robust full-backs showing no-quarter, attacking avenues were largely restricted.

In a state of affairs even more perplexing for the Rovers, Lothian moved up the park in a sleek and aggressive manner, with Sean Wringe darting around the box with cat-like accuracy.

The sheer volume of free-kicks won by Lothian was an alarming reminder of the still-considerable firepower at the disposal of the supposedly weakened team.

The first-half ended in a flurry of changes with Wringe and James Guy picking away at Ben McGinley in goals with frighteningly clinical ruthlessness.

In the end, this was to prove to be a stark foreshadow of what was to come.

The second-half offered hope for Rossi's side, and it kicked-off in a promising manner, with David Lindsay coming off the bench to reinforce the midfield spine.

The youngster once again showed his mettle, as he used his strength and awareness to suffocate dangerous attacks before they could manifest themselves.

But, this wasn't enough, and this proved to be one of those games where Peebles simply were not at the races.

The formidable partnership of Wringe and Guy once again proved to be a significant headache for the Rovers, as they smacked and bashed McGinley's goals with alarming regularity.

Things came to a head on 72 minutes after Lothian were awarded a penalty for Colin Smith chopping down sub Grant Munro in the box.

But, red-and-white spirits were not broken as McGinley dived the right-way to halt Jamie Devlin's spot-kick.

The joy brought about by McGinley's heroics were not to last however, as the closing stages of the game resulted in growing dominance from the home side.

They chipped away, and their persistence was rewarded as they bagged an 81st minute winner after an unmarked Grant Munro rose to power home a Wringe cross.

Peebles: McGinley, Mackay, Brown, Smith, Cockburn, Rossi, Runciman, Zavaroni, Newell, Renwick, McMath. Subs: Lindsay, Dodds, Lamb, Brogan