Boroughmuir Thistle progressed to the quarter finals of the Sky Sports Cup in some style as they defeated Livingston by eight goals to nil at Meadowbank on Sunday.
Cara Borthwick, Maria Novoa-Torrente, and Fiona Gibson all scored in the first period to give Thistle a healthy three-goal advantage by half time.
A Molly Orr-Love strike and a second Borthwick goal followed after the interval, before debutant Emily Reid scored an incredible 20-minute hat-trick to round off a fantastic day at the office for the home side.
The result means that Thistle progress from the second round into the quarter finals where they will come up against an as-yet unknown SWPL 1 side in November.
Having fallen to a 2-0 away loss against Livingston a few weeks ago and really struggling to gain a foothold in the match, Boroughmuir came into this one looking for a much-improved performance against stern opposition. However, few could have predicted what transpired over the subsequent 90 minutes.
Leni Parrish and Borthwick - who have been attacking focal points for Thistle in recent weeks down the left and right respectively - combined in the ninth minute to give the home side the lead. Parrish sprayed a pin-point, cross-field pass out to Borthwick who was in acres of space at the back post, got the ball under control, and fired home beyond Livingston ‘keeper Rachel Pirie.
Merely eight minutes later it was two when a well-rehearsed free kick routine caught the Livingston defence on their heels and Novoa-Torrente turned the ball home from close range following Cailin Michie’s low cross and a few mis-hit shots.
There was slight confusion following Boroughmuir’s third goal on 22 minutes, with Gibson rising highest to head home Louise Mason’s corner and Orr-Love getting a touch on the ball as it found its way into the net.
However, unselfishly, Orr-Love confirmed at half time that the ball had in fact already crossed the line before she made contact and thus Gibson’s first goal of the season was confirmed.
The visitors did manage to get forward a couple of times before the interval, with a cheaply-given-away corner leading to a stramash in the box but Boroughmuir eventually managed to clear the danger.
Within four minutes of the restart, Orr-Love officially managed to get on the scoresheet when she made an intelligent run round the back of the Livi defender, latched onto Mason’s through ball, and smashed home from 18-yards to add Thistle’s fourth.
Orr-Love - who was making only her second start of the season - was again at the heart of the action on 62 minutes when she spotted the runs of Gibson and Borthwick down the right-hand-side and found them with an excellent pass. The Livingston left back was nowhere to be seen as Gibson laid the ball off for Borthwick to fire first time beyond Pirie.
In the 67th minute, Purple Pathway graduate Reid joined the action and became the second player in as many weeks to be handed their senior debut after making the step up from Boroughmuir’s Under-17 squad.
Within a minute she made an instant impact as she picked up Scarlett Brady’s long ball, shrugged off a Livi defender, and expertly lifted the ball over the goalkeeper from the left side of the box to add Boroughmuir’s sixth goal.
An already-great debut then got even better five minutes later when Reid snuck in front of the defender to cut out her clearance, left two others for dead as she made off goalwards, and nestled a right-footed strike into the top left corner from around 18 yards out.
The Lions did have the ball in the back of the net via Erin Burns following a rare foray into the Boroughmuir box with three minutes to go, but the linesman flagged for offside.
A minute later up the other end of the park, though, Burns was given her marching orders when she received a second yellow card for bringing down Emily Arthur in the box and handed Reid the opportunity to bag her hat-trick from the penalty spot.
The youngster was completely unphased as she stepped up and coolly placed the ball into the top left corner to complete her incredible trio of debut goals and cap off an 8-0 Boroughmuir victory.
A quite astonishing day, then, as Thistle swept aside a Livingston team who have notoriously posed a tough test and an incredible first senior-team appearance for Reid who could have scarcely dreamt of a better debut.
The draw for the quarter finals of the Sky Sports Cup takes place tomorrow (Tuesday 1st October) at 3.30pm, with Thistle facing an SWPL 1 side in the last eight on Sunday 10th November. Before that, though, a trip to face Gartcairn in the league awaits on Sunday afternoon, with the game kicking off at 2pm.
Boroughmuir Thistle: Harkness, Brady, Sheehan, McCafferty, Gibson (Gallagher 82’), Novoa-Torrente, Michie, Parrish (Simmons 82’), Mason (C) (Hinchcliffe 77’), Borthwick (Arthur 82’), Orr-Love (Reid 67’)
Subs: Angelini, Armstrong, Arthur, Forbes, Gallagher, Hinchcliffe, Macleod, Reid, Simmons
Livingston: Pirie, Hughes, Frew, Laird, Morgan (Dickov 72’), Mulligan (Davie 55’), Burns, Evans, McArthur, Dodds, Canavan
Subs: Reeve, Davie, Dickov, Kean, McFadyen, Paterson, Walkingshaw
Referee: Lewis Hogarth
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