With ten Scottish League One teams and six Championship clubs heading into tomorrow’s William Hill Scottish Cup 3rd round draw there are sure to be a few matches that invite the prospect of a ‘cup-shock’.
We’ve picked out six Scottish Cup third round results from the past ten years that prove that, no-matter what the gulf in leagues is, anything can happen in the cup.
Elgin City 4-4 Bo’ness United – 1 November 2014
REPLAY – Bo’ness United 5-4 Elgin City – 8 November 2014
Last year’s third round tie between League Two Elgin City and junior side Bo’ness United produced an astonishing 17 goals and one of the most exciting ties in recent cup memory. A topsy-turvey first game saw Bo’ness battle back from 3-0 down to seal a 4-4 draw and a lucrative replay back in the central belt. The return tie was just as exciting with FIVE first half goals before second-half strikes from Ross Campbell and Nicky Walker booked Bo’ness’ passage into the next round. Watch all 17 goals below:
Culter 1-1 Partick Thistle – 19 November 2011
A classic case of David vs Goliath. Division One Partick Thistle had reached the fifth round in the previous year’s Scottish Cup while Junior’s Culter FC were making only their second ever appearance in the competition. An early goal from Thistle’s Paul Cairney looked to signal the start of a comfortable win before Ryan Stott equalised for the home side on 19 minutes. Buoyed on by their home support Culter held on to seal a famous draw and a replay back at Firhill Stadium.
Irvine Meadow 1-0 Arbroath – 28 November 2009
Another case of Juniors upsetting the big boys. Irvine Meadow had home support on their side but were facing a professional team in the third-tier of Scottish football. With the odds against them the Ayrshire team came straight out of the traps and took the lead thanks to Richie Barr on 36 minutes. A nervy second-half followed but Meadow hung on to celebrate one of the finest victories in their 112-year history.
Greenock Morton 3-1 Kilmarnock - 6 January 2007
Kilmarnock were considered heavy favourites ahead of their trip north to play Second Division Greenock Morton. An early away goal from Colin Nish seemed to confirm those suspicions but Morton quickly came back and went into the lead thanks to Chris Templeman’s double. Paul McGowen added to Killie’s woes with a late goal sending the Cappielow faithful into a cup frenzy!
Dunfermline 3-2 Rangers – 7 January 2007
Manager-less Rangers had not long parted company with Paul Le Guen but were still expected to win this tie against SPL rivals Dunfermline. The Fifers had other ideas though and quickly raced into a 2-0 lead thanks to Jim Hamilton and Stephen Simmons. East End Park went wild on 46 minutes when Phil McGuire headed the Pars even further ahead before Kris Boyd’s double pulled things back. Dunfermline held on to claim victory and would go on to reach that year’s Scottish Cup final.
Clyde 2-1 Celtic - 8 January 2006
Much of the focus before this game centred around former Manchester United captain Roy Keane, who was set to make his debut for boyhood heroes Celtic. Things wouldn’t go to plan for the Irishman though as First Division Clyde staged one of the all-time Scottish Cup shocks against the holders at Broadwood. Craig Bryson headed the home side in front before Eddie Malone made it 2-0 just a few minutes later with a stunning volley into the top corner. A tie that will live forever in the memory of Clyde fans.
Tomorrow’s William Hill Scottish Cup 3rd round draw will be conducted by former Scotland manager Alex Mcleish at 10am. Follow @Scottishfa on Twitter for all your updates.