Braidhurst High School’s under 15’s football team started their Scottish Cup campaign with a hard fought victory over a strong McLaren High School side.   The visitors started brightly, striking the post and missing a glaring opportunity to go in front.   However, they were made to pay for their missed opportunities as a long free kick from Reece McAlear evaded everyone and crept into the near post to open the scoring.   Braidhurst doubled their lead soon after, thanks to a great strike from Alastair Small into the top corner.   The second half was a scrappy affair, and after McLaren scored to half the deficit, Braidhurst battled hard to secure victory and ensure progress into the next round.   Mr O’Toole and Mr Clarke were happy with the result and the boys now look forward to an away tie against either St Ambrose or Grangemouth High School.

The girls had their first outing of the year on Wednesday with the first round of fixtures in the North Lanarkshire 7-a-side leagues taking place at St Andrews High School in Coatbridge.   Both the junior and senior teams competed in fixtures against other North Lanarkshire schools in their respective leagues.   The junior team came away with three victories from five with the seniors wining one and drawing one from their four fixtures.   It was a very good start to the season with all the girls giving a good account of themselves.   Well done!   The girls are now looking forward to an away trip to Galashiels at the start of November in the first round of the u18 shield.

Braidhurst Under 14s braved stormy weather conditions on Thursday to play their Semi-Final of the Lanarkshire Cup away to Chryston High School. The first half was a scrappy affair with both teams struggling to cope with the conditions, but the visitors eventually went in front thanks to a left-footed strike from Alistair Small. Stuart McKinstry then doubled their lead soon after, firing past the keeper at the second time of asking, which gave Braidhurst a 2-0 lead going into half-time. The second half was much the same as the first, but after a Nathan Spence pass put Robbie Shanks through on goal, a neat finish past the keeper put the game beyond doubt. The game ended 3-0 to Braidhurst, with Mr Clarke and Mr O’Toole delighted at the outcome as well as the effort that the boys put in. They are now into the Cup Final where they will meet the winners of St. Maurice’s HS and Taylor HS.

Scottish Cup Quarter-Final: Lochgelly HS vs Braidhurst HS

Braidhurst Under 14s travelled to Fife on Tuesday afternoon to play their Scottish Cup Quarter-Final match against Lochgelly HS. It was a massive game for both schools and the players were led on to the park by a piper. Once the game had begun the visitors controlled the opening period, making their possession count when Reece McAlear scored with a composed finish after great work from Adam Kettings. Moments before half-time, a quick-fire double from Alistair Small and Max McGuigan put Braidhurst in a commanding 3-0 lead. After the restart, a fine save from substitute goalkeeper Lewis McCallum prevented the hosts from coming back into the game. A long range strike from Adam put the game well beyond doubt and Braidhurst were to progress to the Semi-Finals as 4-0 winners. Mr Clarke and Mr O’Toole were delighted with the team’s achievement and they now face St. Andrews Secondary.

A five star performance from Braidhurst under 13s saw them defeat Cardinal Newman in their Lanarkshire Cup semi-final.   In a match they totally dominated, Robbie Brown fired the visitors in front after a scramble in the box from Cody McLeod’s corner.   They doubled their lead soon after when Babajide Adeeko fired past the goalkeeper at his near post, and Braidhurst were well on their way to victory as Aidan Hughes made it three on the stroke of half-time.   Robbie added his second of the game soon after the restart, before substitute Jonathon Kelly scored with a well-taken goal.   The boys were in buoyant mood and could have scored more but the game was to end 5-0, much to the delight of Mr Clarke and Mr O’Toole.  The Under 13s are now into the final where they will face either St Andrew’s & St Brides HS or Cathkin HS.

Braidhurst Under-14s travelled to Coatbridge on Tuesday evening to play their quarter final Lanarkshire Cup tie against St Andrew’s High School. After a very poor start to the game the hosts raced into a two goal lead, but Stuart McKinstry started the fightback scoring a great goal direct from a free kick. Alistair Small then fired home to put the visitors level, however a sloppy goal conceded minutes after put St Andrew’s back in front. On the stroke of half-time Rhys Mallinson crashed a shot off of the crossbar but Dean Watson was on hand to fire the rebound into the roof of the net, levelling the scores at 3-3. Soon after the restart Tommy Hunter produced a fantastic save to keep the scores level, tipping a goal bound strike onto the crossbar. Dean finally put Braidhurst into a well-deserved lead, with Alistair then further adding to their advantage. A tremendous 30-yard strike from Dean put the game well beyond doubt, with a late consolation from St Andrew’s not enough to stop the Under 14s from progressing to the semi-finals as 6-4 winners.

A five-star performance from Braidhurst Under-13s saw them defeat Cardinal Newman in their Lanarkshire Cup semi-final. In a match they totally dominated, Robbie Brown fired the visitors in front after a scramble in the box from Cody McLeod’s corner. They doubled their lead soon after when Babajide Adeeko fired past the goalkeeper at his near post, and Braidhurst were well on their way to victory as Aidan Hughes made it three on the stroke of half-time. Robbie added his second of the game soon after the restart, before substitute Jonathon Kelly scored with a well-taken goal. The boys were in buoyant mood and could have scored more but the game was to end 5-0, much to the delight of Mr Clarke and Mr O’Toole. The Under-13s are now into the final where they will face either St. Andrew’s & St. Bride’s HS or Cathkin HS.