Going loco at Seafield Park
STRATHSPEY Thistle matched one of the favourites for this season’s
Highland League championship, Inverurie Locos, for most of the first half of their meeting at Seafield Park on Saturday before eventually going down 4-1.
One lapse in concentration just before the break undid all the previous hard work, according to manager Brian Ritchie, as the Jags let their visitors take a one-goal lead in at half time.
The Locos compounded Strathspey’s misery by doubling their advantage just two minutes after the turn around before going onto make it four prior to Mateusz Bobrowski’s consolation strike for the hosts.
“I was pleased with the boys’ efforts,” admitted Ritchie.
“In the first half, we had a game plan and we stuck to it but we lost the opening goal just before the break and that was a body blow because there had been nothing between the teams up until that point.
“We sat the players down at half time and told them the importance of keeping it tight for the first five to 10 minutes of the second half.
“We had to hold on to what was still there and then we would open up and have a right go at them but, unfortunately, within a minute of the start of the second half we found ourselves 2-0 down.
“That meant Inverurie had their tails up and were full of confidence. All of their players wanted to get on the ball and their boys were flooding forward from the back.
“Inverurie eventually went four up and then all of a sudden our boys decided to get the finger out and start having a go at them.
“We forced them back for the last 20 or so minutes and I would say we were probably the better team throughout that spell when we were camped in their half.”
There was also a change between the posts for Strathspey, with Ritchie handing a debut to young goalkeeper Paul Robertson, who replaced the unavailable Gordon MacDonald.
On Saturday, the Locos started strongly with Neil Gauld’s strike having to be cleared off the goal line before the Locos attacker cracked the crossbar with another effort.
The Jags worked hard to contain their visitors but they were stung by the opener just six minutes before half time.
Goalkeeper Daniel Bell’s long kick out was nodded down by John Maitland for Gauld, whose pinpoint cross was perfect for Craig Ross to head home.
A bolt from the blue from Inverurie midfielder Scott Begg put the away side firmly in control of proceedings two minutes after the break.
Ross laid the ball off to the former Brora Rangers player who thumped an unstoppable drive beyond Robertson from 20 yards.
Gauld then nodded home Inverurie’s third on 55 minutes with a 12-yard header and Thistle were starting to fear the worst just two minutes later when the same player controlled the ball on his chest and lashed it into the bottom corner.
However, Strathspey dug in and their endeavour was rewarded with a consolation goal through Bobrowski in injury time.
Read the full story in this week’s Strathy