Alloa Athletic…4 (4)

Brechin City…3 (3)

Brechin City win 5-4 on penalties.

THERE was penalty heartbreak for Alloa Athletic as they missed out on a place in the Championship on spot-kicks.

After a thrilling encounter which the Wasps edged 4-3, after trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Brechin came out on top in the shootout to send the Angus club into the second tier.

Jim Goodwin made one change to the side which lost the first leg in midweek, Greig Spence coming back in in place of Steven Hetherington.

The Wasps almost got off to the worst possible start when Wednesday’s goalscorer Elliot Ford got to the byeline, aided by a slip from Andy Graham, and flashed a ball across the face of goal, but nobody in a red shirt was able to get on the end of it.

Alloa were denied an opener by Graeme Smith with ten minutes on the clock, the keeper saving from Spence after the top scorer had been played in by a terrific ball from Dylan Mackin.

Jordan Kirkpatrick then fizzed a shot over the crossbar as the Wasps searched for the goal which would level the tie.

Kevin Cawley skipped past a couple of challenges and fired a shot low past Smith, but it found the side-netting, although many inside the ground thought it had gone the other side of the post.

But just after the half-hour mark, the deadlock would be broken. Ford raced onto a through-ball and cut back for Dale, who curled an unstoppable shot beyond Neil Parry and into the top corner.

Alloa’s heads could have dropped but just a minute later they had a route back into the tie. Mackin’s shot was blocked by Paul McLean’s arm, and the referee pointed to the spot. Spence stepped up and sent Smith the wrong way to haul his side right back into the tie.

And the goal that levelled the tie arrived five minutes before the break. Scott Taggart burst down the right and whipped in a perfect cross, and Spence got in front of everyone to meet it and send his header beyond Smith.

But ten minutes into the second half, Brechin got their noses back in front. Liam Watt’s corner was met by Paul McLean, who powered a header into the top corner, and although Parry appeared to be fouled, the officials waved away the protests.

Alloa immediately upped the tempo and Stefan McCluskey stretched to reach Waters’ free kick, only to see his effort clear the bar.

But they would draw level in the tie a few minutes later, and it was Spence who claimed his hat-trick. Mackin headed the ball on, and with his back to goal Spence produced a terrific overhead kick which flew past Smith and into the bottom corner.

However, the Wasps were on level terms for only a couple of minutes. Watt had been having a lot of joy down the left and found space again, curling a shot beyond Parry and in via the crossbar, despite the best efforts of Waters on the line.

Unbelievably, though, Alloa scored again a minute later. Taggart swung in yet another cross, and Mackin was the man in the middle to meet it and bring the Wasps back on terms again.

Frank McKeown could have sealed it at the death as he headed into Smith’s arms, while Ally Love blazed a good chance over at the other end.

But despite plenty of good attacking play, there was no more scoring and for the second week running, the game entered extra time.

Alloa were almost in front in the tie in the first period of stoppage time when Jordan Kirkpatrick drew a good save from Smith, after Graeme Holmes had almost picked out Spence with a brilliant ball over the top.

McLean almost added his second of the afternoon when his header came back off the post, and Spence could have won it in the dying seconds of the opening period, but he scuffed his effort into Smith’s arms.

Brechin were proving dangerous on the counter and Andy Graham had to make a tremendous block to deny Love.

But even after 30 extra minutes, the sides could not be separated and once again it came down to penalties.

And in the shootout, Spence and Flannigan both missed their spot-kicks before Dale stepped up to send Brechin into the Championship.

Alloa Athletic: Parry, Taggart, Waters, McKeown, Graham, Robertson (Holmes), Cawley (McCluskey), Flannigan, Spence, Kirkpatrick, Mackin (Martin). Not used: Marr, Hetherington, Longworth, McDowall.