Highland League round-up: Late Fraserburgh winner dents Brechin City title bid as Brora Rangers move six points clear

James Duthie hailed Fraserburgh for refusing to settle for a draw after their late winner dented Brechin City’s Breedon Highland League title challenge.

Greg Buchan’s strike earned the Broch a 1-0 victory at Bellslea in the final league meeting between the clubs.

The Hedgemen will leave the Highland League at the end of the season. If they don’t win the title and gain promotion through the play-offs, the Angus club will join the new Lowland League East and when they depart they may be pleased to see the back of Fraserburgh.

In 11 league and cup meetings since 2021 the Broch have won seven times, there have been three draws, with Brechin only prevailing once.

Fraserburgh are fifth in the table with 50 points from 26 games and assistant manager Duthie said: “It was a well-deserved three points.

“I think over the 90 minutes we were the better side. We gave away very few chances and if it we’d been a bit tidier in the final third we possibly could have scored more.

“I’m delighted with the performance and I’m delighted to get the three points.

“It’s not in our nature to settle for a draw – especially at Bellslea – the fans wouldn’t allow it.

“We kept on going, we kept putting balls forward, running forward and trying to pick up second balls and trying to play from there.

“It was a good finish from Greg and he thoroughly deserved that goal.

“We spoke a couple of weeks ago about not letting the season dwindle away, about keeping good standards and having a good mentality to try to finish as high as possible.”

Match action

Although there was a dearth of goalmouth action in the first half, Fraserburgh had the better of proceedings and enjoyed plenty of territory.

Scott Barbour was thwarted by an excellent block from Callum Hannah early on and Willie West’s header from Buchan’s right-wing free-kick was held by goalkeeper Andy McNeil.

Brechin didn’t create anything of note in the opening 45 minutes, but did start the second half more purposefully.

Mitch Taylor’s 20-yard drive forced a routine stop from goalkeeper Joe Barbour and then Grady McGrath fired over from 15 yards after good work by Mitchell Findlay on the left flank.

Taylor had another go with a shot off target from the edge of the box just after the hour mark, but after that Fraserburgh – who were playing down the Bellslea slope – tried to pen the visitors in.

West’s long range strike flashed over the crossbar and he also stung McNeil’s palms with a header from Joshua Hawkins’ long throw-in on the left.

But in the 89th minute the Broch did break the deadlock.

Bryan Hay’s long throw from the right wasn’t cleared by the Brechin defence and Buchan pounced to steer a left-foot shot into the bottom left corner from 12 yards.

Boss says Hedgemen didn’t compete

The result leaves second-placed City six points behind leaders Brora Rangers, but with two games in hand, and also ends a run of four straight league victories since Andy Kirk returned as manager in January.

He added: “It’s always difficult here, but in the first half we never tried to play, we never put our foot on the ball and got caught up in putting it forward.

“We didn’t do anywhere near enough, we didn’t compete, we were very weak, we didn’t run in behind enough.

“We still didn’t do it enough in the second half, but we were a little bit better and we had a couple of opportunities.

“Overall I thought the game was pretty poor and it comes down to a set play that we know Fraserburgh are pretty strong with.

“We’ve still got two games in hand and we’re still in the mix, it’s just about trying to take as many points as we can between now and the end of the season and we’ll see where we sit.

“But we need to do a lot better in terms of the performance, the performance was poor for large parts.”

Clachnacuddin 2-2 Formartine United

Formartine United manager Stuart Anderson was pleased to see his side come from behind to take a point against Clachnacuddin.

The Pitmedden outfit trailed 2-0 at Grant Street Park, but came back to draw 2-2, which means Anderson’s charges remain fourth in the Breedon Highland League table, eight points behind leaders Brora Rangers, but with two games in hand.

Anderson said: “With how the game panned out it’s not the worst result for us because it keeps us right in the mix, but we’ve got to do the business with our games in hand.

“We were disappointed not to win because we had some really good chances and Mark Ridgers pulled off a couple of great saves in the first half.

“But that being said we were 2-0 down and we managed to rally and get a point and I’m pleased with that.

“I think it was massive in the context of the league campaign that we managed to get something. We did that, and were unlucky not to win.”

Lilywhites pegged back

Clach goalkeeper Mark Ridgers made good saves to deny Hamish Ritchie, Julian Wade and Glenn Murison in the first period, but four minutes shy of the interval the Lilywhites took the lead.

Jordan MacRae and Mikey Mackenzie combined to tee up Ben Corner and he slotted a finish past goalkeeper Stuart McKenzie.

Four minutes into the second half the hosts netted again when Craig Lawrie’s pass released Troy Cooper, who made no mistake.

On 54 minutes United pulled one back when Rory McAllister got in behind and scored with a half-volley.

Eight minutes later Tyler Mykyta’s inswinging corner from the right was headed into the net by Murison to restore parity.

After that Clach had appeals for a penalty dismissed by referee Lewis Brown following a tangle in the box between MacRae and Finlay Morris.

The Lilywhites are third in the table, seven points behind Brora having played the same number of games.

Boss Conor Gethins said: “I think a draw was a fair result, but when we were 2-0 up it’s disappointing to be pegged back.

“I think the incident with Jordan in the second half was a stonewall penalty, but you can’t be 2-0 up at home and draw if you want to challenge for a title, although I can’t fault the players’ work-rate.

“I think Troy Cooper is easily in the top three for Highland League player of the year based on his 18 goals, 17 assists and overall ability. He cannot be excluded from that chat for me.

“I said before the game that I didn’t think we were in the title race, it’s between Brora, Brechin and Formartine.

“We’re seven points behind Brora having played the same number of games and I think that’s too big an ask to claw back.”

Buckie Thistle 0-2 Brora Rangers

Brora Rangers moved six points clear at the top of the Highland League table with a 2-0 victory over Buckie Thistle at Victoria Park.

James Anderson grabbed his first Cattachs goal in the first half, before Shane Sutherland netted a crucial second early in the second half.

Both sides were reduced to 10 men after the break with Buckie’s Marcus Goodall dismissed for a second yellow card and Brora’s Alex Cooper for a last man foul on Jags substitute Ross Morrison.

Brora boss Steven Mackay was pleased to get the win, saying “I’m delighted to get any sort of win here as it’s been some time since we’ve won at Buckie, especially with how tight it is at the top of the league.

“I felt we dominated for large spells of the match and should have kicked on and scored more after Buckie went down to 10 men.

“We switched off unnecessarily for the red card incident with Alex Cooper, which was frustrating, but they didn’t put us under too much pressure after that.”

Brora in control early

The visitors went in front in the 21st minute, a quick free kick catching Jags napping and Connor Bunce dinked a superb cross over Sean McIntosh for Anderson to head in from right on the goal-line.

Shane Sutherland blasted another good chance over the crossbar following a 24th minute Tony Dingwall corner from the right.

The Cattachs made it two 90 seconds after the restart, Bunce again with an excellent run forward and he found Sutherland in space to drill low beyond McIntosh from 16 yards.

A nightmare start to the second half for the hosts continued when Goodall was shown a second yellow card by referee Lawrence, despite appearing to pull out of his challenge on Sutherland.

Buckie were unlucky not to reduce the deficit on 77 minutes when Liam Macdonald crashed a free kick off the post from 20 yards after Cooper’s red card.

Jags boss Lewis Mackinnon said: “We started the game well enough, but then we switched off for the free kick and didn’t mark (James) Anderson in the box, which is very frustrating.

“We’re down to the bare bones and I’m asking boys to play a lot of minutes and some in different positions than they’re used to.

“We did well to stay in the game with 10 men though and could have set up an interesting finish if the free kick goes in from Liam (Macdonald).”

Deveronvale 1-0 Huntly

A late Jack Mitchell long range goal saw Deveronvale secure a first home win over opponents Huntly since August 2019.

The Banff side had gone into the fixture on the back of four successive defeats and player-manager Garry Wood admitted there wasn’t much between the two teams.

He said: “It was difficult with the wind in the first half and we struggled to get out. It was similar for Huntly in the second half.

“Jack (Mitchell) was looking to come off but luckily we kept him on and he’s pulled out an absolute wonder strike to win us the game.

“He’s shown his class there and won us the three points in the end.”

It was a first clean sheet for Wood’s side in 10 games as he praised the defensive qualities from his team.

He added: “It’s probably something we’ve looked at over the season and goals against column doesn’t read well for us.

“I’m delighted for Euan Storrier to get a clean sheet as I thought his handling was very good and you see it with his distribution as well which is a big threat for us going forward.”

Mitchell the difference

Midway through the first half, a Michael Clark through ball played in Sam Robertson but he was denied by a good stop from Euan Storrier.

Chances were still coming for the visitors and with minutes of the half remaining, a Kai Watson delivery picked out Robertson who forced Storrier to save low at his near post.

The Banff side secured the win in the 81st minute.

A quick break upfield from a throw-in on the left saw Samuel McLean lay the ball off for Mitchell who struck a superb shot from outside the box into the far top corner for his seventh of the season.

Mitchell almost doubled the lead minutes later with a speculative effort from out on the left wing which came back off the post.

It was a fifth successive away fixture without a win for Huntly with assistant manager Allan Youngson admitting they didn’t take their chances in the first half.

He said: “It the same story as the Buckie game a week ago where we have two or three good opportunities, we didn’t take them and got punished for it.

“They then get one opportunity towards the end and Jack Mitchell puts it in the top corner with an absolute worldy.

“I thought we were very good defensively but you’ve got to take the opportunities at the other end when they come.”

Banks o’ Dee 4-1 Forres Mechanics

Banks o’ Dee got back to winning ways with a 4-1 victory over Forres Mechanics, with co-manager Paul Lawson keen to praise his players amid a busy schedule.

It was Dee’s third game in a week after losses to Formartine United and Buckie Thistle, but goals from Mark Gilmour (2), Max Alexander and Magnus Watson ensured they overcame the Can-Cans, who grabbed a consolation through Mark McLauchlan.

Lawson said: “I thought we were excellent. The work-rate was good, and we had a desire to score goals and take the three points.

“At this level of football, we know how crucial it is to get the first goal and even better when we get a second in the first half.

“I’ve got to be happy with a 4-1 win but the way in which we conducted ourselves today was especially pleasing.

“It’s hard to play Saturday-Wednesday-Saturday as we’ve had to do that this week, especially when we’ve had a difficult year with injuries.

“But we were able to welcome back Zack (Stephen) and Joe (McCabe) today which was great. We’ll continue to manage the squad as best as we can with a busy schedule coming up.”

Dee in control by the break

Dee took the lead after 20 minutes when Gilmour played a give-and-go with Sam Pugh before slotting past Sean McCarthy.

The home side doubled their lead 15 minutes later from a corner. The ball dropped awkwardly in the Forres box and Alexander was on hand to stab his effort goalwards from close range.

Forres looked brighter in the second half and almost halved the deficit when Lewis Mackenzie cut in from the right wing and fired against the post.

But Dee ended the contest in the 66th minute when Pugh exposed the Forres defence with a reverse pass to Gilmour, who scored with a curling effort.

Forres then grabbed one back in spectacular fashion, when McLauchlan volleyed an effort from 40 yards over Daniel Hoban and into the top corner.

The home side rounded out the scoring with 15 minutes to play when Watson pounced on a short back-pass to score from 12 yards.

Forres manager Steven Macdonald said: “I thought the first goal was offside and there were a few decisions that went against us.

“But we also were very poor at times and allowed Banks o’ Dee to win comfortably.

“We’ve had a great start to the year but none of our usual qualities were apparent today.”

Inverurie Locos 2-3 Strathspey Thistle

Strathspey Thistle boss Aaron Doran was thrilled to see his side record their first  victory over Inverurie Locos at Harlaw Park since entering the Highland League in 2009.

The Irishman watched his side do it in dramatic fashion too after the Grantown Jags were two up then were pegged back to all square before sealing the victory with a last minute winner.

Doran said: “I thought it was a well deserved win for us after our first half performance in which we had a number of chances and the only disappointment being we were only coming in a goal up.

“We got there in the end, we don’t get many last minute winners so I’m glad we got it in this game.

“Our striker Caelen Mutch put the Locos goalkeeper under pressure, challenging his kick outs three times in the first half, once in the second.

“He was unlucky not to score from one of them, he was a real handful.

“Andrew Macleod was brilliant. I asked him midweek where he thought his best position was and where he wants to play and it’s as a number 10.

“You could see his power, drive and composure and he deserved to get the winner at the end.

“The players are giving me everything, I’m proud of every one of them.

“Our target when I took on the job was 40 points, if we can achieve that it’ll be brilliant. The lads out there were hungry, everyone wants to be performing.”

Locos comeback in vain

Despite netting six in midweek at Rothes, Locos were lacklustre and went behind midway through the first half, Mutch driving a low thunderbolt into the corner of the net.

Five minutes after the restart an unfortunate own goal by Taylor Chapman increased the lead.

Dean Donaldson made four substitutions in the 57th minute and there was an immediate response.

Callum Duncan, one of the four newcomers, rifled home with 59 minutes on the clock.

Ethan Cairns equalised 15 minutes later in a crowded goalmouth, although Josh Bolton was also claiming the goal.

However, with only a minute left, player of the match Macleod scored the winner when his curled low free kick hit the post and trickled over the line.

Donaldson felt the Grantown side deserved their win.

He said: “A draw was the best we could have achieved. They were better than us. We were second best in the first hour and didn’t win many battles

“Their two forward players caused us all sorts of problems. We made substitutions and were on top in the last half hour and could have scored more than two.

“We were then caught by the last minute free kick. I wanted to see how my players would react under pressure. We won’t get off with this next season.”

Turriff United 3-0 Rothes

A hat-trick from Miller Keir secured victory for Turriff United against Rothes at the Haughs.

Keir’s nine-minute treble just before half-time ended this game as a contest as the Speysiders slumped to yet another defeat.

United manager Greg Moir said: “The first half was pretty even and Ronnie Sharp had Rothes set up quite well.

“Ultimately Miller shows his quality with his hat-trick. It took a bit of character to come back from Wednesday night at Brora which wasn’t ideal, so I’m just happy to get the win.

“We have been working on other elements of Miller’s game and he is definitely improving, he’s a really exciting player and I’m really chuffed for him that he’s got another hat-trick.”

Keir the star of the show

Rothes started well and forced a couple of corner kicks in the first five minutes, but on each occasion home keeper Lee Herbert gathered confidently.

At the other end Turriff created the game’s first real chance when Murray Cormack headed over an inch perfect cross from eight yards.

On the quarter hour mark United brought on Reece McKeown in place of Timi Fatona after he collided with the perimeter fence surrounding the pitch following a 50-50 challenge.

Both physios were in attendance as the unfortunate forward was stretchered to the dressing room, and later taken to hospital.

In the 36th minute Keir went down in the box under a challenge and referee Will Adams pointed to the spot.

Keir took the penalty kick himself and sent Stewart Black the wrong way for Turriff’s opener, against the run of play

Keir was on target again two minutes from the break, stabbing the ball over the line from a couple of yards.

Rothes were aggrieved with the decision after the assistant referee had raised his flag for offside before taking it down again.

It got even better for home striker Keir two minutes later when he capitalised on poor defending to clip home a third goal for a quickfire hat-trick.

There was nothing between the teams early in the second half, but just after the hour Ritchie Massie went down in the box and referee Adam awarded a penalty kick.

However, Turriff substitute Connor May blazed the resultant spot-kick high over the crossbar.

Rothes boss Ronnie Sharp said: “We switched off for 10 minutes before half-time and it cost us dearly.

“They scored with a penalty and the second one looked well offside. I thought it was poor officiating as the far side assistant put his flag up and then took it down again.”

Nairn County 1-0 Lossiemouth

Manager Wayne Mackintosh was far from impressed with Nairn County – despite their 1-0 win against Lossiemouth at Station Park.

The victory moves the Wee County back to up to seventh the Breedon Highland League.

Mackintosh said: “It was a poor game, we played well for the first 10 or 15 minutes, but then Lossie changed shaped to match us up and we didn’t seem to know how to deal with it.

“We had plenty of possession, but we did very little with it.

“It’s 90 minutes I’ll quite happily forget, but it was pleasing to find a way to win.”

In the first period Lossie’s Struan Coli hit the crossbar after weaving in off the left flank.

The only goal arrived in the 51st minute when Jamie Carnihan found the net with a good angled drive from the right side of the penalty area.

In the closing stages Paul Brindle could have added to Nairn’s tally after wriggling free inside the box, but he was thwarted by goalkeeper Arran Anderson.

At the other end Lewis McAndrew’s header forced a fine save from goalkeeper Dylan Maclean, but the result means Lossie are now without a win in 15 matches.

New co-managers Martin Charlesworth and Kevin Flett have been in charge for the last three games, which have all ended in defeat.

Charlesworth said: “It was better again from myself and Kevin’s perspective. The Wick game wasn’t great, the Huntly game was a bit better and this game was a bit better again.

“We’re trying to change quite a few things and there were positives to take it from it.

“I don’t think there was much in it and I don’t think we should have lost the game.”

Wick Academy 2-3 Keith

Keith’s recent upsurge continued when they twice came from behind up at Harmsworth Park to complete the double over Wick Academy to make it four successive wins, and a single defeat in their last 14 outings.

The visitors levelled twice through Conor Bird and Jack Searle before the Maroons grabbed the winner three minutes from the end through Mikey Ironside.

Keith manager Craig Ewen said: “Another incredible win for us.

“Wick were the better team in the first half, dominating territory without any clear-cut chances.

“We weren’t playing at the level of the past few weeks and were probably lucky going in 1-1 at half-time. At 2-1 with 25 minutes to go, I didn’t really see it coming.

“We threw on the subs, they made an impact, we changed the shape and threw more bodies forward.

“Jack then scores a great individual goal.  That gave us more momentum, and we found a winner late on again.

“I can’t take my hat off enough to the players just now, their will to win and desire to play out the game is unbelievable.

“For long spells today it wasn’t pretty, but we found a way to win at a difficult venue.”

Wick ahead early

The home side opened the scoring after 10 minutes, attributed to the ball squirming through Keith goalkeeper Craig Reid’s hands.

It was level pegging in the 26th minute when a Zak To free kick flew into a crowded penalty area where Bird got the final touch.

Wick got their noses in front again 10 minutes into the second half when George Ewing powered home a header from 10 yards.

A triple substitution for Keith seemed to do the trick, and it was all square again with 74 minutes played when Searle fired home from 20 yards.

Then, with three minutes remaining, a Searle cross saw Ironside stretch to stab home the winner.

Wick manager Gary Manson said “Games latterly on that park have been scrappy affairs.

“You could probably count on one hand the amount of chances created by either team.

“Both our goals came from set pieces, as did their first one, and the winner came from a cross into the box.

“For us to walk away from that game with nothing, and to concede three goals, was criminal.

“We worked at it in training, and at half-time, so it’s extremely disappointing.”

[Source: Press and Journal]