The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Forfar’ s bid to close gap hit by late Elgin winner
Forfar Athletic suffered a second straight cinch League 2 defeat yesterday as hosts Elgin produced a late goal show.
A Darryl Mchardy 93rdminute winner sparked scenes of jubilation at Borough Briggs with the Loons remaining seven points behind leaders Kelty Hearts, who now have two games in hand.
Both teams cancelled each other out in an uninspiring first half, however Elgin took command after the break.
The result was Elgin’s second successive singlegoal victory, which moves Gavin Price’s men to within five points of the promotion play-offs.
The Black and Whites kicked off the new year backed by a near sold-out allocation of 499 supporters.
Forfar made the trip north in second position, but fresh from suffering a 4-3 defeat at home to Stenhousemuir the previous weekend.
Loons boss Gary Irvine brought back three players who missed the loss to Stenny due to Covid and self-isolation – captain Ross Meechan, Callum Moore and Stefan Mccluskey – while joint top scorer Matty Aitken was absent for the first time this season, with Sam Fisher and Grant Anderson dropping to the bench.
Price made three changes from the side which signed off for 2021 with a 1-0 win over Stirling Albion nearly a fortnight ago.
Russell Dingwall, Fin Allen and Aidan Sopel dropped out, with Tom Grivosti, Josh Peters and Matheus Machado drafted in.
There was a place on the bench for teenage midfielder Evan Towler following his loan move from Aberdeen, while former Albion Rovers leftback Ali El-zubaidi was listed as a trialist among the substitutes.
The Loons enjoyed some spells of early pressure, with a dangerous Mccluskey delivery forcing a strong defensive block by Darryl Mchardy. City’s first opening came on 10 minutes when Kane Hester went through on goalkeeper Marc Mccallum, but was unable to squeeze his effort home from a tight angle.
Forfar threatened again on 14 minutes, with Craig Slater off target with a strike from distance, while at the other end a powerful drive by Brazilian winger Machado drifted inches wide of Mccallum’s righthand post.
The majority of Elgin’s attempts continued to come from long range, with Angus Mailer and Machado sending efforts well off target.
Slater sent another strike wide from 25 yards on 34 minutes, with neither goalkeeper being tested during the first half.
Elgin’s best chance of the opening period arrived on 38 minutes when Hester got his head on the end of a Machado corner, only to see his effort cleared off the line by Callum Moore.
Both sides went into the second half looking to produce a better offering, with Towler brought on at the interval to replace injured skipper Euan Spark.
Elgin goalkeeper Thomas Mchale was called into action a minute after the break, blocking Scott Shepherd’s initial effort with his legs before standing tall to gather Gary Harkins’ follow-up.
A slack ball out from the back resulted in an even better chance for Harkins who weaved into a great position, but he struck his shot into the side-netting.
Elgin came close on 49 minutes when a break down the right saw Matthew Cooper cross for Peters, who sent a firsttime shot wide.
Grivosti was next to threaten with a curling free-kick from the edge of the box, which he was unable to keep down.
Another promising freekick opportunity was wasted on 62 minutes, when Machado blasted high over the bar.
Substitute Tony Dingwall saw a shot blocked in the dying stages, however he set up Elgin’s best late chance for Hester, who could only strike straight into the arms of Mccallum.
Mchale was forced to come out to block a Mccluskey effort as both sides pushed for a winner, with Dingwall seeing a free-kick tipped over by Mccallum.
The resulting corner brought the winning goal though, with Mchardy getting on the end of Dingwall’s corner to nod home, sparking jubilation among the City faithful.