Bo’ness United are on cup duty this weekend, travelling to Station Park to take on Livingston United in the South Challenge Cup. Livingston are currently in Division 3 of the East of Scotland League, sitting in fifth place with three wins from six. They have defeated Hawick Royal Albert, Edinburgh CFC and Fauldhouse United. They lost at Linton Hotspur and were on the end of a heavy defeat at home to Lochgelly Albert. They enjoyed early success, defeating Burntisland Shipyard maintaining an interest in the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup.

Bo’ness last visited Station Park sixteen years ago in a League Cup section match, scoring three goals without reply. It proved a straight forward win, goals coming from Scott Brown, Jon Tully and Will Snowdon (Report). The sides met more recently, over nine years ago at Newtown Park in a Fife and Lothians Cup tie, again with a BU victory, this time the scorers Kieran Anderson and Colin Leiper (Report – Derek Crossan)

Bo’ness would appear to have turned their season around after the slow start. They have accumulated thirteen points from a possible fifteen in their last five games although during that run were disappointed to go out of the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup at Jeanfield Swifts. The BUs are only a single point worse off than they were at this juncture last season. Their last outing produced a first away win at Hearts B thanks to a goal in each half from Tom Grant and Kyle Johnston (Report).

There are sixty one league places between Bo’ness United and Livingston United and by all accounts this should be a clear cut cup win for the BUs. However, the same was thought about the match against Cumbernauld United in last season’s competition but Bo’ness were well beaten on the day. Indeed, the same was said last week as North Region Junior side Lossiemouth United visited the mighty Auchinleck Talbot in the Scottish Junior but it was the Highland minnows who came out on top.

Bo’ness are facing a team with nothing to lose on their own ground with players relishing the opportunity to cause a major upset. It’s up to the Bo’ness players to make sure they take nothing for granted and as usual be at their best to achieve a result. The BU Faithful have not visited Livingston in a while and it’s perhaps time to tackle the roundabouts once more and get themselves to Station Park to cheer on their favourites.

John Spowart
Friday 13 September 2024

BO’NESS UNITED MATCH REPORT SEASON 2007/2008

Date – Monday 25 August 2008
Opponents – Livingston United
Competition – East Region South League Cup Section
Venue –Station Park

Score (Half Time): 3 - 0 Score (Full Time): 3 - 0
Scorer (Bo’ness): S Brown 8 Tully 30 Snowdon 32

Bo’ness United scored an easy victory at Livingston but instead of the three goals scored the margin of victory should have been greater. All the scoring came in the first half but despite almost constant second half pressure, chance after chance went a begging and combined with some good goalkeeping by Livi keeper McGovern, Bo’ness failed to capitalise on their superiority. The game started scrappily but Bo’ness got an early lead after Thomas’s headed passback beat his keeper and went out for the corner. The Livingston defence were relieved it had not been an own goal but when Mullen sent the cross over it found Scott Brown at the far post and his shot hit the back of the net. The goal settled Bo’ness and they played some good football, though in 29 minutes Higgins almost scored for Livingston but his low curled shot on the turn hit the Bo’ness post. To make matters worse for Livingston, right after this Bo’ness scored two goals in two minutes to give themselves a commanding lead. Mullen curled a free kick cross over from the right and the ball found its way into the far bottom corner of the net, courtesy of a final touch from Tully. Bo’ness then won a free kick and from thirty yards Snowdon drilled the shot into the net, with McGovern unable to stop it, even though he got a hand on the ball. Bo’ness might have had more success before half time but McGovern did well to stop an effort from Allison and he turned a Scott shot round the post.

After the break it was more or less one way traffic and Bo’ness mounted attack after attack on the Livingston goal. Again McGovern did well saving two low shots in turn from Morrison and Gary Brown but Bo’ness’s lack of goals was not just down to the Livingston keeper. A number of Bo’ness efforts were wide of the target and how the BUs did not add to their tally is beyond belief. Towards the end of the match, Bo’ness keeper Logan made a good save from Livingston substitute Bradford though shortly after, the same player hit another shot well over.
In the end there was no more scoring and the real task now comes with the start of the Super League on Saturday at Camelon.
Livingston 1. McGovern 2. Thomson 3. Nicholl 4. Thomas 5. Thomas 6. Thomson 7. Kay (T Fleming 59), 8. Frater (Simpson 70), 9. Higgins, 10. Munro (Bradford 70), 11. Brannan Subs (Not Used): Fleming

Bo’ness United 1. Logan 2. Brown 3. Fullerton, 4. Snowdon 5. Tully, 6. Mauchline, 7. Scott, 8. Morrison, 9. S Brown 10. Allison (Muir 64) 11Mullen Subs (Not Used): Gaffney SG Kirkwood

BO’NESS UNITED MATCH REPORT SEASON 2014/2015

Date: Saturday 4th April 2015 Venue: Newtown Park
Fife & Lothian’s Cup 2nd Round
Bo’ness United 2
(Anderson 39 Leiper 75)
Livingston United JFC 0

United captain Chris Donnelly made his two hundredth appearance for the club on his twenty-eighth birthday as he led his side into the next round with a comfortable victory against lower league opposition.
It was the visitors that had the better of the early stages with Jordan Thomson heading over within the opening sixty seconds as Livingston forced four early corners. Bo’ness were to have their first effort on eleven minutes when a Darren Gribben cross came to Stuart Hunter who saw his header saved. Nicky Walker then went close with a header before Ross Philp saw his shot well stopped by visiting keeper Ross Wortley. It should have been one nil on nineteen minutes when a fantastic reverse pass by Ian Nimmo put Walker through on goal but keeper Wortley was again on hand to push a low strike round the post.The keeper was finally beaten on twenty four minutes when a Philp cross found Mark Cowan whose goal bound shot was cleared off the line by Jack McWilliams to keep the scores level.
Bo’ness were dealt a blow just after the half hour when Walker limped off with a hamstring injury which will be a worry for the club with a heavy schedule of games to come.The stubborn Livingston resistance was finally broken on thirty nine minutes. Philp again crossed to Cowan whose effort was saved by Wortley before the ball was headed into the net by substitute Kieran Anderson.. Cowan’s afternoon was to come to an abrupt halt moments later when referee Duncan Smith showed the striker a red card for an off the ball incident and Bo’ness went in at the break with a narrow advantage.

The visitors were to have a couple of efforts from distance after the interval however ten man Bo’ness were quickly back on top. Wortley was again in fine form as he saved well from Paul Murphy, before denying Donnelly a goal with two excellent saves on the hour mark. The Bo’ness captain then had two further efforts that went wide as the home side sought that important second goal.Livingston showed they were still a threat and on seventy three minutes Connor Wallace pushed a Kyle Miller drive behind for a corner, though United broke from the set piece and Donnelly played in Anderson who volleyed narrowly wide. The second Bo’ness goal was to come on seventy five minutes which put the game beyond doubt. Gribben struck a free kick which crashed off the underside of the bar and Leiper was on hand to knock in the rebound and United comfortably saw out the remainder of the match as they advanced to round three.
Assistant manager Gary Wilcox was satisfied with the victory “It was a quiet start for us and we struggled to break them down, but their keeper did have some outstanding saves.
“Even though we had Mark Cowan sent off prior to the interval we still dominated and to be honest we actually played better with ten men and kept two strikers up the park. It was a frustrating day but the most important thing is we are into the next round and the result maintains our momentum ahead of three away league fixtures within a week, where we will hopefully gain nine points.

Chris Donnelly echoed those thoughts “Teams are always hard to breakdown when they sit in, but they defended well and although a few more goals would have been nice we’re in the next round. I did everything but score today and hopefully I have another two hundred games to come for the club.”

Bo’ness United: Wallace, Murphy, Leiper (Snowdon 76), Murphy, Hunter, Campbell, Walker (Anderson 34), Philp, Cowan, Donnelly ©, Gribben Subs Not used: Devine, Gibb, Peat

Livingston United: Wortley © , Wotherspoon, McWilliams, Halliday, Adams, Govan (Stewart 73), Russell, Damba, Grimshaw (Crawford 70), Thomson, Millar.

BO’NESS UNITED MATCH SUMMARY SEASON 2024/2025

Date – Friday 06 September 2024

Competition –Park’s Motors Group Lowland League

Heart of Midlothian B 0

Bo'ness United 2
(Grant 20, Johnston 62)

Bo’ness United enjoyed a successful Friday night at Ainslie Park where they achieved a well deserved win against Heart of Midlothian B. A goal in each half inflicted the damage in a contest that was played at a fast pace throughout.

In the first half play raged from end to end though without too many clear cut chances created. Just before the twenty minute mark Ryan Porteous connected with a Tom Grant free kick cross but his header hit the bar. Just after that Bo’ness thought they had earned a penalty when Smart Osadolor was fouled but the officials adjudged the offence to be just outside the box. It didn’t matter anyway as Osadolor’s shot from the edge of the box was too hot for Hearts keeper MacDonald to handle and Tom Grant followed up to put the loose ball away. Hearts were getting forward but their final ball and shooting was letting them down, their technical area having to ensure they had a good supply of balls to let the game continue.

The second half continued in the same manner, Hearts keen to get themselves back in the game. As it was, with just under thirty minutes remaining Bo’ness scored as a second when Ryan Porteous flicked on a Tom Grant corner and Kyle Johnston was in the right place to knock the ball home. Hearts worked hard to stage a revival but they were up against a set of players desperate to take all the points. Bo’ness matched the energy levels of the young Jambos until the final whistle and left the field to the applause of an appreciative BU Faithful.

Bo’ness have now won four of their last five league games and thirteen from a possible fifteen points see them only one short of where they were at this time last season. The BUs want to continue this improved form and everyone will be working hard to make this possible.

Bo'ness: Campbell, Stevenson, Macaulay, Trialist, Irving, Grant, Stenhouse (Mitchell 88), Johnston, Osadolor, Porteous (Henderson 80). Kennedy (Malcolm 88) Subs (Not Used): Gemmell Hawkins Duffy, SG: Melrose