Wednesday 2nd May 2018
Match Details: Ladbrokes Championship Play-Off Semi-Final 1st Leg, Arbroath v Dumbarton, Wed 2nd May 2018, Gayfield Park, Arbroath. Kick-off 7.45pm.
Match Officials: Nick Walsh will be the match referee for tonight’s game. This will be Mr Walsh’s fourth game in charge in a game involving Dumbarton this season. Assistants will be Paul O’Neill and Gary Hilland. The fourth official is David Munro.
Match Coverage: If you can’t get to the game tonight, you can keep up with the action via our Twitter account where in match commentary is provided by the Sonstrust via Jack Crawford. Follow us using @Dumbartonfc. Hashtag for the game is #sonsvlichties. David Jenkinson will be filming the game for SonsTV and highlights will be available on our You Tube channel 24hrs later.
Supporters Notes: The Sonstrust travel section supporters bus leaves Dumbarton High Street at 16.45pm and is fully booked. Entry prices at Gayfield are as follows – Adults £14, Concessions £8, Parent & Child £17.
Getting to Gayfield: Gayfield Park is situated beside the North Sea on the A92, as it passes through the town.The postcode is DD11 1QB and nearest street is Queens Drive. If travelling by train, Arbroath station is on the main East Coast line between Dundee and Aberdeen with all Scotrail and East Coast/Cross Country express trains stopping. Gayfield is approximately a 10 minute walk from the railway station turn left as you come out of the main entrance to the station and walk down the West Port, then turn right at the bottom onto Millgate Loan and Gayfield is about a quarter of a mile ahead where this road meets with the A92. The bus station is situated across from the railway station in Catherine Street and is served by the number 73 and 39 buses from Dundee and Montrose from the other direction. The Stagecoach express X7 service also calls at Arbroath.
Setting The Scene: The Sons and Arbroath have ‘form’ when it comes to SPFL play-offs. In 2012 both met at the same stage in the process with Dumbarton edging past the Lichties 2-1 on aggregate. Goals from Tony Wallace and Bryan Prunty in the home leg for Dumbarton proved decisive as the second game at Gayfield was a 0-0 draw, memorable for a fine goalkeeping display by Stephen Grindlay.
Some Stats: Tonight’s game will be the 164th match between the two clubs and over the piece Arbroath lead the way with 72 wins to Sons’ 57. There have been 34 drawn matches and a total 534 goals scored!
Player Connections: In recent times David Winters, Michael White, Bryan Prunty, Kevin Nicoll and Mitch Megginson have turned out for both clubs. Alan Cook, Ian Dobbins and Dylan Easton have also featured.
Team News: Defender Dougie Hill is suspended for tonight’s trip to Gayfield, but Craig Barr is available to play as his red-card from last Saturday against Dunfermline Athletic is now the subject of an appeal. Skipper Andy Dowie who has missed the last two games is fit and available for selection as is goalkeeper Scott Gallacher. Chris McLaughlin has had a re-occurrence of his ankle injury is definitely out of tonight’s game and possibly Saturday’s return leg at the Rock.
Alan Findlay