Wick hit the Fort for six

Wick Academy Fort William Highland League

FIVE second half goals sealed a comprehensive league victory for Wick Academy after a nervy first half at home against Fort William.

With just one goal separating the sides at half-time, Fort William went on to concede five goals in a devastating 20-minute spell in the second half, consigning the Lochaber team to their 23rd defeat of the season.

Wick’s six-goal winning margin somewhat flattered the home side, however, as for much of the game they were matched by a dogged Fort William side.

Hopes of a Fort William upset were almost cast aside early on as Wick Academy took the lead after just six minutes courtesy of a deflected Steven Anderson goal.

The Fort were undeterred by this early setback and as the tempo of Wick’s build up play dropped, the visitors were able to assert some influence on the match, creating a number of chances of their own.

Wick were unable to build on their early goal and lacked any real intensity going forward, which was largely down to the Fort’s resilient defence.

However, the Lochaber men were unable to take advantage of their hosts’ lacklustre first half display and came up against Wick goalkeeper, Danny McCarthy, who was in fine form.

Encouragement

With the score at 1-0 at halftime and little to separate the two teams, Fort William could take encouragement from their performance having set up an opportunity to get some points on the road.

Just seven minutes into the second half, however, Wick Academy again scored early in the half when Richard Mcadie dispatched a penalty to double the home side’s advantage.

This prompted a flurry of goals for the home side as, soon after, Andersen netted his second of the match on the hour mark before Michael Steven got on the scoresheet two minutes later.

Davie Allan marked his comeback for Wick after a 15-month lay-off through injury with a goal on the 71st minute.

Two minutes later, Grant Steven made it six for the Scorries and completed the day’s scoring.

Despite that debilitating 20-minute scoring spree, Fort William never stopped working and continued to push for their own chance to score but couldn’t find a way through the Wick defence.

As the sides began to tire, Fort William were able to close out the match without conceding again, which left the Wick attackers frustrated at times.

That win moves Wick up to 13th in what has been a relatively disappointing season so far for the Scorries, while Fort William remain rooted to the bottom of the league.

The Fort are at home to runaway league leaders Cove Rangers this Saturday (March 31).