THE bulk of Saturday’s 3rd Round ties in the Kappa and Only Sport Scottish Amateur Cup went ahead as scheduled, despite Friday’s near monsoon conditions in many parts of the country.

The handful of remaining ties will be played next week to complete the last 64 line-up.

The ‘all-in’ draw introduced from this 3rd Round stage, undoubtedly makes the national competition so exciting for participating clubs. A number of the ties saw sides having to travel the length and breadth of the country to take on unfamiliar opponents.

Wishaw High School FP returned from Aberdeenshire with an impressive 5-1 win over local side, Ellon Amateurs. Edinburgh’s Tollcross Thistle also journeyed cross-country to take on Ayrshire’s Galston United, a side who had made a strong start to their domestic season. Tollcross progressed with an impressive 4-1 score-line.

Cupar Hearts, front-runners in the Kingdom of Fife AFA, were the Round’s top scorers, romping to an emphatic 9-1 win over Renfrew’s Houston United.

Many had identified the all-Central Scottish League clash between Oban Saints and Drumchapel and the tie between their fellow Central side St Patrick’s FP away to Doune Castle from the Caledonian League as the ‘ties of the round’.

Drumchapel came out tops in Oban with a hard-earned 2-1 win. Dumbarton’s St Pat’s do go marching on after dominating their tie, with a comfortable 3-0 victory.

As in the last round, several ties concluded with the drama of a penalty-shoot out after finishing all square at the end of 90 minutes. After a 2-2 draw, Alva, from the Stirling and District League, edged through 7-6 against Baillieston Thistle of the Glasgow Saturday Morning League. Other notable spot-kick winners were Eaglesham (Caledonian League) triumphing over Edinburgh Star (4-2 after a 2-2 finish) and much-fancied Shortlees coming out on top over GSC (4-2 after 3-3 score).

So, the dream of a day out at the National Stadium remains alive for those who remain in the competition. The 4th Round draw will be made soon, with those ties scheduled for the first week in December.

Inevitably, there’s sure to be some titanic clashes between some of the amateur games best known sides. Equally, a number of teams will hope for what they perceive to be a ‘kinder’ draw and possible passage into the real drama of the cup’s latter stages.