Post by Brian Mackay on Oct 6, 2006 19:52:08 GMT -5
Bunillidh Thistle 2 Thurso 6 - REPORT FROM IAIN GRANT
An almost unprecedented two glorious match-days in a row in the North Caley League is surely further evidence of global warming.
While Bunillidh’s hardy knot of regular fans tend to come prepared with windcheaters and waterproofs, Saturday’s match was watched by a shirt-sleeve crowd. The home management team of George Groat and John Ross have taken over a side at a low ebb in the wake of a succession of barren seasons. Having lost a clutch of experienced campaigners, the Lybster-based duo are having to rebuild from the roots. They have recruited a bunch of promising teenagers from east Sutherland and Wick whose potential was shown the previous week when they went head-to-head with Balintore in a Port Services Cup before losing out in extra-time. They failed to reproduce that form on Saturday when they were outgunned by an experienced Thurso team, half-a-dozen of whom have had spells in the Highland League. Early on, the Vikings threatened to completely over-run their hosts.
Two nil down after 13 minutes, Bunillidh had by then barely had a kick off the ball. But they gamely fought their way back and a converted free-kick 10 minutes from half-time changed the whole feel of the game.
But the two goal cushion was restored before the break and two strikes in the space of a minute at the start of the second third killed the contest stone-dead.
Thurso went into Saturday’s match on the back of three straight defeats and a good display was secondary to getting back on the winning trail.
They achieved both though nagging doubts about their vulnerability at the back remain.
Where they improved from the previous week’s deflating 6-2 reverse at Alness was in a more pronounced work ethic and willingness to chase lost causes.
Player/manager Ross Sutherland made his first start, as did Phil Makhouli, while Des MacLeod returned from injury to partner Mark Nichol up front.
Sutherland featured in the early play with some clever prompts and assists. In the first minute he released Makhouli down the right flank with his centre being headed narrowly past by Nichol.
Thurso climaxed their turbo-start with the opening goal on five minutes.
Nichol appear boxed in near the right touch-flag but he somehow improvised a glorious, deep cross which eluded the central defenders to allow Lee MacDougall to net with a close-in volley.
The pressure on Bunillidh was unremitting and they indebted to Graham Williamson for several top-drawer saves.
After nine minutes, the Wick teenager particularly impressed when he got down smartly to divert a netbound Nigel Mackenzie effort.
Four minutes later, Williamson was unable to do anything when Nichol’s inch-perfect pass set MacLeod racing in from the left.
MacLeod outran Graham Grant before neatly beating Williamson from 12 yards.
Some stalwart defending ensured Thurso were not to increase their advantage and Bunillidh belatedly started to register on the possession charts.
On 20 minutes, their first attack should have allowed them to reduce the leeway.
Wick-based Greg Shearer did all the spadework and his unerring cross found Jordan Flett a couple of yards out from goal.
The latter mistimed his header which flew over the bar,
Bunillidh continued to live dangerously at the other end and Nichol was the victim of a marginal offside ruling as he sprinted clear on to MacLeod’s flick.
Any notion the visitors entertained of a cosy stroll to victory was rudely checked when Bunillidh got a goal back.
A free-kick conceded just outside the penalty box by a back-tracking Gavin Bremner saw Malcolm Cowie’s pop at goal take a slight deflection en route to finding the top left-hand corner of the net.
Thurso responded with a cracking MacDougall free-kick delivery which ended with Paul MacCallum heading over from close range.
They restored the two-goal cushion five minutes from the break when Mackenzie sucked in opponents on a foray down the right before finding Makhouli lurking near the penalty spot.
With his back to goal, he found MacLeod who in turn set up Bremner for a rasping, low shot past Williamson into the far corner of the net.
Towards the end of the half, Bunillidh defenders Gordon MacRae and Nicky Davidson were both yellow-carded for dissent.
The visitors were quickly into their stride after the resumption and good play by Makhouli ended with Nichol’s shot on goal skimming past the left post.
Ironically, Bunillidh were enjoying their best spells of ball retention when they were hit by two goals in rapid succession.
After 59 minutes, MacKenzie fed Nichol who got his angles spot on in finding a narrow gap between two defenders to allow Makhouli to run in to stroke the ball past Williamson.
A minute later, the goal scorer turned provider with Makhouli’s deep cross seeing MacDougall’s header squeeze in between the keeper and his near post.
Thurso passed up a cinch on 68 minutes when Nichol made a horlicks of what should have been a set-up for MacLeod.
The latter then flashed a fierce effort inches over while MacCallum could not apply the finish to a solo run which took him clear into the penalty box after he skipped past three would-be tackles.
Bunillidh got their second on 77 minutes when a communication breakdown between Asa Sinclair and Kevin Sinclair ended with Martin Sutherland scoring with a well-struck 25 yarder.
Thurso returned to the offensive and MacLeod had a venomous volley blocked by a defender as his side sought to fully make up for the previous week’s loss.
They did so in some style on 82 minutes when Mackenzie seized on the aftermath to a corner.
From just outside the box, he netted with a stunning, rising volley.
On 90 minutes, Thurso sub Blair McIntosh’s blushes for a slack pass across his penalty box were spared when the unmarked Blair Duncan’s tame effort was easily gathered by Sinclair.
The final chance fell to MacCallum after an injury time corner taken by MacDougall. The central defender rose well enough but sent the last of his hat-trick of chances wide of the target.
Bunillidh boss Groat believed his young charges were somewhat intimated early on.
“Thurso are a quality, experienced side but they are also full of physically big lads and I felt we sat back a bit in the early stages and handed them the initiative.
“We had a really good chance before we got the goal back and got a bit of belief in ourselves.
“We were competing pretty well when we lost the goal just before half-time.”
Groat also took positives from his young’s side’s second half display.
His opposite number Sutherland was delighted to get back in the winning track.
He said: “After three defeats on the trot, it was vital to get the win.
“We played well in spells and I thought we knocked the ball about really well for the first 20 minutes.
“But when it got a bit easier for us, we tended to do too much work on the ball, instead of moving it on.”
Bunillidh – Williamson, MacRae, Davidson, G. Grant, Cowie, Mackay, M. Sutherland, S. Grant (Shepherd 85), S. Sutherland (Gordon 82), Shearer (Duncan 49), Flett.
Thurso – Sinclair, Miller, MacCallum, Green (McIntosh (77), Sutherland (Inrig 70), Bremner, Makhouli (Mackay Steven 70), Mackenzie, Nichol, MacLeod, MacDougall.
Ref – Mr W. Sinclair
An almost unprecedented two glorious match-days in a row in the North Caley League is surely further evidence of global warming.
While Bunillidh’s hardy knot of regular fans tend to come prepared with windcheaters and waterproofs, Saturday’s match was watched by a shirt-sleeve crowd. The home management team of George Groat and John Ross have taken over a side at a low ebb in the wake of a succession of barren seasons. Having lost a clutch of experienced campaigners, the Lybster-based duo are having to rebuild from the roots. They have recruited a bunch of promising teenagers from east Sutherland and Wick whose potential was shown the previous week when they went head-to-head with Balintore in a Port Services Cup before losing out in extra-time. They failed to reproduce that form on Saturday when they were outgunned by an experienced Thurso team, half-a-dozen of whom have had spells in the Highland League. Early on, the Vikings threatened to completely over-run their hosts.
Two nil down after 13 minutes, Bunillidh had by then barely had a kick off the ball. But they gamely fought their way back and a converted free-kick 10 minutes from half-time changed the whole feel of the game.
But the two goal cushion was restored before the break and two strikes in the space of a minute at the start of the second third killed the contest stone-dead.
Thurso went into Saturday’s match on the back of three straight defeats and a good display was secondary to getting back on the winning trail.
They achieved both though nagging doubts about their vulnerability at the back remain.
Where they improved from the previous week’s deflating 6-2 reverse at Alness was in a more pronounced work ethic and willingness to chase lost causes.
Player/manager Ross Sutherland made his first start, as did Phil Makhouli, while Des MacLeod returned from injury to partner Mark Nichol up front.
Sutherland featured in the early play with some clever prompts and assists. In the first minute he released Makhouli down the right flank with his centre being headed narrowly past by Nichol.
Thurso climaxed their turbo-start with the opening goal on five minutes.
Nichol appear boxed in near the right touch-flag but he somehow improvised a glorious, deep cross which eluded the central defenders to allow Lee MacDougall to net with a close-in volley.
The pressure on Bunillidh was unremitting and they indebted to Graham Williamson for several top-drawer saves.
After nine minutes, the Wick teenager particularly impressed when he got down smartly to divert a netbound Nigel Mackenzie effort.
Four minutes later, Williamson was unable to do anything when Nichol’s inch-perfect pass set MacLeod racing in from the left.
MacLeod outran Graham Grant before neatly beating Williamson from 12 yards.
Some stalwart defending ensured Thurso were not to increase their advantage and Bunillidh belatedly started to register on the possession charts.
On 20 minutes, their first attack should have allowed them to reduce the leeway.
Wick-based Greg Shearer did all the spadework and his unerring cross found Jordan Flett a couple of yards out from goal.
The latter mistimed his header which flew over the bar,
Bunillidh continued to live dangerously at the other end and Nichol was the victim of a marginal offside ruling as he sprinted clear on to MacLeod’s flick.
Any notion the visitors entertained of a cosy stroll to victory was rudely checked when Bunillidh got a goal back.
A free-kick conceded just outside the penalty box by a back-tracking Gavin Bremner saw Malcolm Cowie’s pop at goal take a slight deflection en route to finding the top left-hand corner of the net.
Thurso responded with a cracking MacDougall free-kick delivery which ended with Paul MacCallum heading over from close range.
They restored the two-goal cushion five minutes from the break when Mackenzie sucked in opponents on a foray down the right before finding Makhouli lurking near the penalty spot.
With his back to goal, he found MacLeod who in turn set up Bremner for a rasping, low shot past Williamson into the far corner of the net.
Towards the end of the half, Bunillidh defenders Gordon MacRae and Nicky Davidson were both yellow-carded for dissent.
The visitors were quickly into their stride after the resumption and good play by Makhouli ended with Nichol’s shot on goal skimming past the left post.
Ironically, Bunillidh were enjoying their best spells of ball retention when they were hit by two goals in rapid succession.
After 59 minutes, MacKenzie fed Nichol who got his angles spot on in finding a narrow gap between two defenders to allow Makhouli to run in to stroke the ball past Williamson.
A minute later, the goal scorer turned provider with Makhouli’s deep cross seeing MacDougall’s header squeeze in between the keeper and his near post.
Thurso passed up a cinch on 68 minutes when Nichol made a horlicks of what should have been a set-up for MacLeod.
The latter then flashed a fierce effort inches over while MacCallum could not apply the finish to a solo run which took him clear into the penalty box after he skipped past three would-be tackles.
Bunillidh got their second on 77 minutes when a communication breakdown between Asa Sinclair and Kevin Sinclair ended with Martin Sutherland scoring with a well-struck 25 yarder.
Thurso returned to the offensive and MacLeod had a venomous volley blocked by a defender as his side sought to fully make up for the previous week’s loss.
They did so in some style on 82 minutes when Mackenzie seized on the aftermath to a corner.
From just outside the box, he netted with a stunning, rising volley.
On 90 minutes, Thurso sub Blair McIntosh’s blushes for a slack pass across his penalty box were spared when the unmarked Blair Duncan’s tame effort was easily gathered by Sinclair.
The final chance fell to MacCallum after an injury time corner taken by MacDougall. The central defender rose well enough but sent the last of his hat-trick of chances wide of the target.
Bunillidh boss Groat believed his young charges were somewhat intimated early on.
“Thurso are a quality, experienced side but they are also full of physically big lads and I felt we sat back a bit in the early stages and handed them the initiative.
“We had a really good chance before we got the goal back and got a bit of belief in ourselves.
“We were competing pretty well when we lost the goal just before half-time.”
Groat also took positives from his young’s side’s second half display.
His opposite number Sutherland was delighted to get back in the winning track.
He said: “After three defeats on the trot, it was vital to get the win.
“We played well in spells and I thought we knocked the ball about really well for the first 20 minutes.
“But when it got a bit easier for us, we tended to do too much work on the ball, instead of moving it on.”
Bunillidh – Williamson, MacRae, Davidson, G. Grant, Cowie, Mackay, M. Sutherland, S. Grant (Shepherd 85), S. Sutherland (Gordon 82), Shearer (Duncan 49), Flett.
Thurso – Sinclair, Miller, MacCallum, Green (McIntosh (77), Sutherland (Inrig 70), Bremner, Makhouli (Mackay Steven 70), Mackenzie, Nichol, MacLeod, MacDougall.
Ref – Mr W. Sinclair