Match Report - By John Hoey

Brechin City 0 Alloa Athletic 2

Brechin City will have it all to do this coming Saturday after a 2-0 defeat from Alloa Athletic in the first leg of the Scottish Championship semi-final play-off at Glebe Park.

It was a disappointing and uncharacteristic performance from City who rarely threatened the Alloa goal and the visitors clinched victory with two second-half goals from Michael Chopra and Kyle Benedictus.

City know that they will have to perform a lot better in the second leg this Saturday if they are to reach the final but both managers conceded after the game that it is only at the half-way stage and clearly there is still all to play for in three days time.

Graeme Smith, Colin Hamilton, Gerry McLauchlan, Alan Trouten, Andy Jackson and Bobby Barr were all recalled to the City side from Saturday's starting eleven.

The early stages of the game were fairly scrappy with most of the action confined to the midfield area and with neither side able to carve out any clear-cut goal-scoring opportunities although the Wasps had a half-chance in the 19th minute when Kyle Benedictus picked up a defensive clearance at the edge of the City box and fired a shot just wide of City keeper Graeme Smith's right-hand post.

Michael Chopra had another half-chance three minutes later when he picked up the ball just within the City half and pushed forward before trying a right-foot drive which went inches past.

The visitors then picked up the pace with Iain Flannigan and Liam Buchanan both firing shots wide of the target in quick succession and in the 25th minute a fierce Mark Docherty drive from 25 yards brought out a fine save from Smith.

City hit back and a Colin Hamilton 20 yard shot went past Wasps keeper John Gibson's right-hand post but Alloa picked up the initiative again and Chopra flighted in a good cross from the right into the City box for Buchanan who directed his header just over the bar.

The visitors kept up the pressure and they were desperately unlucky not to grab the lead on the stroke of half-time when a Docherty free-kick was met by Flannigan who glanced a great header towards the bottom corner but Smith brought off a superb save to tip the ball round the post.

City started the second-half on the offensive but the Wasps hit back and grabbed the opener with a great goal in the 56th minute.

Ryan McCord flighted a great ball into the City box which was knocked back across the face of the City goal by Buchanan for Chopra who blasted a first-time volley past Smith.

City were struggling to create anything clear-cut in front of goal with the Alloa defence superbly marshalled by Ben Gordon giving absolutely nothing away and the hosts made a change in the 64th minute replacing Andy Jackson with Robert Thomson in an effort to change the direction of the game.

City made a further change eight minutes later with Calum Tapping replacing Fusco and just a minute later the visitors replaced goal scorer Chopra with Isaac Layne.

The City sub made an impact within a minutes of coming on when he won the ball wide on the right before flighting a great cross into the visitors penalty-box which was just missed by Thomson.

The visitors made a further substitution with ten minutes remaining, Graeme Holmes replacing the tiring McCord.

The visitors were still enjoying the majority of pressure and possession and they nearly notched a second goal in the 85th minute when a superb cross from Kevin Cawley was scooped away by Smith with Buchanan ready to pounce but the Wasps wrapped up victory on the stroke of full-time when Kyle Benedictus headed home a Flanigan corner.