Fate dictated that Musselburgh Athletic boss Stevie McLeish had faced as tough as possible a start to his new job, with away games against the top two teams in the Superleague.

Burgh had returned pointless from both Kelty Hearts and Newtongrange Star but had performed encouragingly for long spells in both games, and so the manager and his players were looking for a positive result in Saturday’s Scottish Junior Cup third-round tie away to Blackburn United of the South Division.

A few years had passed since the teams’ last meeting, and this was Burgh’s first visit to New Murrayfield Park, operational only since the middle of 2013. McLeish gave a first start in blue to striker Steven MacDonald, and there was a starting place too for Jed Davie, who had played on loan for Blackburn while a Livingston player last season. Blackburn included latest recruit Alex Lurinsky, an experienced striker most recently with Bathgate Thistle.

A near-gale-force wind threatened to ruin the game as a spectacle but Burgh coped very well considering the conditions and were on top from the outset. There were less than five minutes on the clock when Davie came close to scoring against his former team-mates, his blistering shot from 18 yards coming back off the post, much to home keeper Wightman’s relief.

Blackburn struggled to maintain possession for any length of time, with their visitors clearly the better team, and after frequent probing it came as no surprise when Musselburgh opened the scoring in the 13th minute. Top scorer Jordyn Sheerin was the man who broke the deadlock, dispossessing Allison in midfield and skipping past a defender before driving his shot low into the bottom corner.

Burgh continued to dominate possession but the home defence was proving hard to break down, and Blackburn almost equalised just beyond the half hour when Lurinsky forced Ally Adams to tip the ball over the crossbar with a curling effort.

A defensive lapse four minutes from the break allowed the visitors to double their lead, with Kevin McDonald nipping in to intercept a dubious pass back from midfield to defence before squaring the ball to Sheerin, who lashed the ball into the net from just inside the box. The big striker could have completed his hat-trick before the interval but Wightman pulled off a good save.

The second half resumed with Musselburgh playing into the strong wind and, not surprisingly, Blackburn saw more of the ball after the break. Adams blocked an Allison header as the hosts sought a way back into the game and Sheerin again posed a threat shortly afterwards but the home defence managed to escape unscathed.

Burgh secured their place in the third round with 19 minutes remaining, Sheerin notching his and his team’s third goal with a firm back post header from sub Chris Moffat’s cross. The wind wasn’t helping either team and with the contest more or less over, highlights were increasingly few, but Steven MacDonald might have made it four with his first goal for the club a couple of minutes from time – Wightman, however, saved at his near post.

This was a deserved victory for Musselburgh, who now look forward to Tuesday’s third-round draw in Glasgow. They return to Olive Bank on Saturday for the first time since September 27, when Ballingry Rovers are their visitors with Superleague points at stake. The Fife club seem to struggle for managerial stability and have a new man in charge – they suffered a 6-0 humbling at Port Glasgow in the Scottish Junior Cup last week and will be aiming to bounce back, but Burgh start as favourites.