Keepers ensure it ends with a share of the spoils
FORRES MECHANICS 1 INVERURIE LOCOS 1 Good goalkeeping ensured this game ended even.
Inverurie passed up an early opportunity when Garry Wood failed to find the corner with a header.
The opening goal arrived in the eighth minute as summer signing from Huntly Logan Johnstone swung the ball in from the left and, when the ball was only partially cleared, Lloyd Robertson drilled a low shot into the corner Stuart Knight’s goal.
Knight was in action to keep out a deflected Robert Ward effort, reacting well to tip the ball over for a corner.
Forres’ best chance of the half fell to in-form striker Ben Barron. He ran onto an Ethan Cairns flick, but, after Andy Reid slowed down him, Greig Mitchell got back to block the striker’s effort.
Forres came out for the second half with fire in their bellies and, having had a couple of early efforts, Cairns made it third time lucky, forcing his way through the backline and rounding Reid before blasting the ball into the gaping goal.
Both teams had their goalkeepers to thank for ensuring they took a point from the game. Reid made a fantastic save to keep out a Barron header, while, in the final minute, Knight used his giant frame to fill the goal as Wood was fed through by Ward.
BRECHIN CITY 7 DEVERONVALE 1
Brechin stormed to the top of the Highland League table after thrashing Deveronvale by 7-1 at Glebe Park.
It was an emphatic and well-deserved victory for a rampant City side, with a hat-trick from on-form striker Grady Mcgrath the highlight of a superb performance.
It was Vale who grabbed a shock lead after just six minutes when City centreback Nathan Cooney was dispossessed by
Horace Ormsby, who had a free run in on goal to slot the ball into the bottom corner of the net.
However, City fought back to equalise after 18 minutes when Kieran Inglis flighted a free-kick past visiting keeper Sean Mcintosh, with Grady Mcgrath converting a penalty in first-half stoppage-time to give City a 2-1 lead after Fraser Macleod had been brought down in the box by Ben Allan.
Mcgrath extended City’s advantage in the 57th minute when he rifled a shot home from the edge of the box and he completed his hat-trick 11 minutes later when another blistering drive from 20 yards gave Mcintosh no chance.
City were pushing forward at every opportunity and a superb angular drive from Euan Lowdon in the 73rd minute made it 5-1.
Deveronvale were looking shellshocked as City powered forward and it was no surprise when Raith Rovers loanee Aaron Arnott added a sixth goal for the hosts three minutes later.
City weren’t finished, though, and the hard-working Lowdon made it 7-1 with virtually the last kick of the ball when he blasted home from close range to bring the curtain down on a superb team performance from the new league leaders.
NAIRN COUNTY 1 FORMARTINE UTD 1
County and Formartine battled out an evenly-contested draw at Station Park.
The visitors struck the post on 21 minutes, with Jack Maciver driving in from the right, but, from a tight angle, his effort came back off the outside of the upright.
Maciver was involved again eight minutes later, but his low cross from the right was just ahead of Julian Wade.
But it was Nairn who went ahead on 34 minutes. Callum Maclean’s cross from the right found Angus Dey and, although his first-time shot was blocked by a defender, he coolly swept home the loose ball from eight yards.
Ciaran Young’s volley from 18 yards was held by Ewen Macdonald in the United goal as the goal gave the hosts a lift. The lively Maciver was involved again on 38 minutes, but his shot from a tight angle was repelled by Nairn goalkeeper Lewis Munro at his near post.
The hosts broke up the park and Young headed the ball into the path of Sam Gordon, but his rasping drive was saved by Macdonald.
Mark Gallagher had a curling effort for Formartine on 64 minutes, but it was well fielded by Munro.
United drew level a minute later, though, with Graeme Rodger sweeping the ball home at the far post after it had dropped kindly to him following a corner from the right.
Andrew Greig and Young both had low efforts held by Macdonald as Nairn looked to respond.
Munro had to dive to his left to parry away Aidan Combe’s curling effort from 20 yards which seemed destined for the top corner. The homesters broke down the left on 83 minutes, but Dey steered his low shot past the near post from the edge of the box.
Charlie Brown stepped down from his role as Strathspey Thistle manager during the course of the week. Brian Ritchie has retaken the reigns on a temporary basis.