Match Report - By Steven Mew

City’s preparations for the new season continued yesterday evening with a clinical performance against Scone Thistle at the Carnegie Fuels Stadium at Glebe Park.

It was an impressive showing for Patrick Cregg’s side who showed no mercy against the Midlands League outfit, managed by City hall of famer Charlie King.

There was a more familiar look to the City lineup with no trialists included in the starting 11, although the City boss continued to cast his eye over a couple coming off the substitutes bench in the second half.

City came flying out the traps and found themselves remarkably 2-0 up within the opening 3 minutes with ANTHONY MCDONALD and MARC SCOTT both converting from close range.

Euan Loudon fired a shot straight at the keeper before SEAN HASTIE got himself on the scoresheet against his former club as he sweeped home a right sided cross in the 8th minute.

Just a few minutes later, Anthony McDonald struck the upright with a powerful shot from the edge of the box and shortly after the quarter hour mark, Sean Hastie found himself in on goal but he was denied by a last ditch challenge.

City had the opportunity to add a 4th goal on 22 minutes when a Scone defender was penalised for handball inside the box and EWAN LOUDON stepped up to dispatch the penalty confidently into the bottom corner.

Hastie was denied by the trialist goalkeeper at the near post before ANTHONY MCDONALD grabbed his second of the evening, angling a shot into the far corner following a well-worked move.

City continued to lay siege on the visitors goal with McDonald and Loudon both coming close, before the latter rattled the crossbar with a vicious effort from just inside the box.

On the stroke of half time, City made it 6 when a right sided delivery from MARC SCOTT dipped over the keeper and into the far corner with jury out on whether it was deliberate or not.

Manager Patrick Cregg opted to freshen things up at the break with Spencer Moreland, Craig Tosh and trialist #15 entering the fray for Ryan Ferguson, Seth Patrick and Marc Scott.

Within a minute of the restart, the trialist #15 was in the thick of things as his strike inside the box was blocked before City extended the lead on 57 minutes with a fantastic counter attack. EWAN LOUDON surged forward with the ball from inside his own half and played the ball in to the feet of Fraser MacLeod who played a neat flick back into the path of Loudon who provided a composed finish into the corner.

Despite being seven goals to the good, City certainly didn’t take their foot off the gas and they made it 8-0 on 64 minutes when LEWIS MARTIN stooped to head home from Anthony McDonald’s corner.

Ewan Loudon, who was directly up against older brother Ross in the Scone defence, was hungry for his hat-trick and he had a shot deflected wide before trialist #16, who had replaced Sean Hastie earlier in the half, glanced wide from a Craig Tosh cross.

With 70 minutes on the clock, EWAN LOUDON grabbed the hat-trick that he had been craving as he nodded home from a left sided cross from trialist #16.

With 20 minutes remaining, most of those in attendance expected City to break into double figures however it didn’t quite materialise, with trialist #15, McDonald and Moreland all coming close in the closing stages.

City will complete their pre-season friendly programme this coming Saturday as we take on near-neighbours Brechin Victoria for the Americas Cup (kick off 2pm).