Bonnyrigg demolition proves Bo'ness can go all the way

Make no mistake, Bo'ness were worthy winners of this quarter-final tie and, moreover, have a squad that looks capable of keeping the trophy in West Lothian for another 12 months following Linlithgow's success last season.

But, at the same time, Bonnyrigg were bitterly disappointing, especially considering they'd drawn with the same opponents on two occasions in the Super League this season.

Miller reckoned some of his players had failed to handle this bigger test as Bo'ness comfortably secured their place in the last four alongside Musselburgh.

He was also annoyed that one of them, substitute Scott Devlin, had lost the plot after being sent off late on following an incident with Nicky Walker that led to all sorts of shenanigans going on. Devlin had already been shown the red card when he decided to confront Walker again before having to be hustled up the tunnel by Bonnyrigg No.?2 Ian Black.

Miller may have been disappointed to see his side crash out of the top Cup competition, especially after recording such a good win in Ayrshire against Ardrossan Winton Rovers in the last round. But he was angry to see one of his players letting himself and the club down with such behaviour and Gibson can surely expect to be hit with a fine for his trouble.

By contrast, Bo'ness boss Willie Newbigging was a happy man - and rightly so after watching his side progress much easier than he had expected after those two earlier clashes. The home side got on the front foot right from the off and posed a constant threat in particular down the right flank, where Bonnyrigg's veteran defender Ally Reid quickly discovered he was going to be in for a busy afternoon.

Michael Burgess, in the Bonnyrigg goal, pulled off a good save to deny on-loan Stenhousemuir striker Grant Plenderleith midway inside the first-half before also getting a touch to divert an overhead kick from Stuart Hunter on to his crossbar. And it was no more than Bo'ness deserved when they went in front in the 38th minute, when Brian McQueen, the giant defender who's on loan from Hamilton, bundled the ball over the line after Burgess had parried a near-post flick on from Hunter as he got on the end of an Andy Shirra free-kick. Some in the Bonnyrigg camp reckoned the ball hadn't crossed the line, giving the referee pelters as he went off the park at half-time, but the instant reaction of his assistant suggested it had.

There was certainly nothing dubious about the second Bo'ness goal that arrived just before the break, McQueen doing the damage as he got on the end of a great cross from Graeme McLaren to head home.

A triple substitution by Miller early in the second-half had the desired effect and the visitors almost pulled a goal back when a shot from James Steele, one of the players introduced, was cleared off the line by McLaren.

Alas for Bonnyrigg, Bo'ness broke straight up the park to make it 3-0, Plenderleith using his pace to burst into the box from the right, his surge ending with the ball breaking to Chris McFadyen, who rolled it into an empty net.

That was game over and, with Bonnyrigg's brief rally being exactly that, McFadyen added a fourth with 13 minutes to go, the flame-haired striker cashing in this time on an incisive burst from substitute Martin Ure.

Ure almost got on the scoresheet himself, as did fellow substitute Barry Donald, and the sound of the final whistle surely came as a huge relief for Bonnyrigg. A delighted Newbigging admitted his side's passage had been secured more comfortable than he had envisaged but, equally, felt the 4-0 win was no more than his players deserved.

Can Bo'ness now go all the way? Newbigging said he wouldn't be allowing his players to start dreaming just yet as "there's still a lot of work to do". But, yes, they can, especially with a side that has real pace about it, particularly up front, where three flying machines in Walker, McLaren and Plenderleith are all capable of hurting teams. They're also strong at the back, where McQueen and captain Roger Duffin are rock-like figures in the middle, flanked by the equally impressive Hunter and Will Snowdon.

As for the engine room, Newbigging will head into the two-legged semi-final knowing whatever team Bo'ness come up against are unlikely to have a better combination that John Fraser and Andy Shirra.

Bo'ness United: Longmuir, Snowdon, Hunter, Duffin, McQueen, Fraser, McLaren (Hamilton 81), Shirra (Donald 77), McFadyen, Walker, Plenderleith (Ure 71). Subs: Ballatine, Cooper, Fleming, McGurk.

Bonnyrigg Rose: Burgess, Caine, Reid (Devlin 55), Dunn, Ritchie, Morrice, Grady, Burrell, McCallum, McLeish (Steele 55), Martin (Moffat 55). Subs: Bracks, Bunyan, Paliczka, Amos.

Referee: Kevin Graham.

Bo'ness United 4

Bonnyrigg Rose 0