Post by Brian Mackay on Mar 1, 2007 12:36:41 GMT -5
Thurso 7 Alness United 0 - report by Iain Grant
Thurso’s North Caley League title hopes still hang by a thread as they prepare for their final match away to Balintore tomorrow.
The Vikings could well to live to rue their two early season home defeats to Balintore and Golspie.
Though they have lost just once in the league since, the championship remains Golspie’s to lose.
The Sutherland side require four points from their two outstanding fixtures, away to Alness tomorrow and at home to Bunillidh the following week.
Their target however could well be much easier or even attained were Thurso to drop points tomorrow.
They kept the race alive following their decisive win over Alness on Saturday.
It avenged two previous two defeats by the Easter Ross outfit who have in the meantime gone off the rails.
The contest was alive and well in the first half when the visitors were a shade unlucky to find themselves two down.
Had they converted a penalty shortly before the turnaround, the game may well have taken a different turn.
But Mark Nichol’s first instalment of a hat-trick a minute after the interval effectively signalled the end of Alness’s challenge.
Alness were encouraged by early signs of hesitancy in Thurso’s defence with winger Gary Calvert causing concern with his probes down both flanks.
Thurso striker Des MacLeod’s neat flick produced the first opening after 10 minutes for Jamie Mackenzie.
Mackenzie’s strike was true enough but it was snuffed out by a valiant block by defender Robert MacAskill.
Three minutes later, Jamie Mackenzie set up Lee MacDougall for a crack at goal which keeper Michael MacCallum turned behind.
From the corner, a partial clearance deflected off Willie Inrig to MacLeod who netted from close range.
The goal stood despite vociferous protests that the ball had struck Inrig on the arm.
Though having few outright chances, Alness were very much in the game and seeing plenty of the ball.
After 23 minutes, Calvert created space for a powerful, low shot which Thurso keeper Asa Sinclair did well to hold at the first attempt.
Two minutes later, Thurso doubled their lead after a swift counter sparked by Kevin Miller dispossessing an opponent on the halfway line.
The ball fell to Bremner who plied through the undefended central channel before unleashing a shot from 25 yards,
It should have been dealt with by MacCallum but he only succeeded in checking the flight off the ball with a two-handed, overhead parry.
But for the sticky surface, the ball could well have had the momentum to cross the line as the keeper furiously backtracked.
His attempt to regather was foiled by the inrushing MacLeod.
Alness could feel aggrieved by the score-line, given their contribution up to that point.
Sinclair was called into action on 37 minutes to deal with a snap-shot from Kenny Lyall.
A minute later, MacLeod almost got his hat-trick when his swerving shot from just outside the penalty box went narrowly past.
Calvert had a buzz-bomb presence and it was he who created his side’s golden opportunity to get back into the contest.
His mazy run took him clear until he was clipped from behind by Miller.
The contact looked just outside the box but ref Mark Dalton saw it differently.
Michael Dunnett’s run-up sent Sinclair diving the wrong way but the spot-kick smacked off the outside of the left upright.
Miller escaped with a ticking-off for the foul but two minutes later was cautioned for a block on Calvert.
A minute from the break, a marvellous long-range pass from Graeme Reid put Nichol in the clear but he could not find a way past MacCallum.
Alness were rocked a minute after the turnaround when they again lost possession in a vulnerable area and Jamie Mackenzie fed Nichol who this time steered a side-foot shot past MacCallum.
Sinclair had a faultless afternoon apart from a botched clearance on 47 minutes.
Lyall was first to react with his shot being blocked before Dunnett’s minuts follow-up was comfortably cleared off the line.
Thurso were now in cruise control as the Alness midfield effort waned and the side appeared to lose heart.
MacLeod had a decent effort turned away by MacCallum before the keeper’s brainstorm led to Thurso’s fourth after 55 minutes.
MacCallum’s attempted wide return pass to MacAskill was spotted by Reid whose challenge succeeded in diverting the ball into the net.
Six minutes later, MacDougall’s hanging cross produced a copybook header by Nichol past MacCallum into the right side-net.
In one of the visitors’ very few attacks after the break, Sinclair did well to turn a vicious, inswinging corner from Kenneth Wright over the bar.
Sub Martin Bain made an early impact with his run down the right ending with across which deserved better than MacLeod’s tame shot which was easily gathered by MacCallum.
As with the previous week’s victory over Bunillidh, the Vikings finished with a late goal flourish.
MacDougall claimed the goal of the game on 86 minutes with a 25 yarder which scorched past MacCallum.
A minute later, Nichol was fouled in the box but managed to stay up to net from a tight angle.
Mr Dalton had however already awarded the penalty, which Nichol duly took and converted.
The hat-trick strengthens the striker’s claim to finish as the league’s top scorer.
Alness manager Alan Brindle had no complaints about being beaten though he thought the scoreline was a bit unfair on his troops.
He said: “If we had scored the penalty, that would have put us right back in the game.
“We’re just not getting the breaks at the moment and after Thurso started to pull away, our heads went down a bit.
“Even so, I think 3 or 4-0 would have been a fairer score.”
Thurso – Sinclair, Reid, Miller (Michael Steven 60), P.Makhouli (Forbes 73), Inrig, Bremner, N. Mackenzie (Bain 67), J. Mackenzie, Nichol, MacLeod, MacDougall.
Alness – MacCallum, MacAskill (Muir 55), Smith, Murray (Bremner 15), Dingwall, Lyall, Gair, MacLeod, Wright, Dunnett, Calvert.
Ref – Mr M. Dalton, Nairn.
Golspie closed in on the title on the Saturday with a 3-1 win at home to neighbours Dornoch.
Colin Doull added to first half strikes from Donald Sutherland and Shaun Kerr (pen) before Chris Campbell pulled a goal back.
The opening match in the Football Times Cup saw holders Invergordon crash out 3-0 to Balintore in a first round match.
Steve MacCallum, John Skinner (pen) and Ewan Dance got the goals.
NORTH CALEDONIAN LEAGUE P W D L F A Pts
THURSO 15 12 0 3 55 22 36
GOLSPIE 14 12 0 2 40 17 36
INVERNESS CITY 16 10 2 4 46 29 32
BALINTORE 14 9 2 3 47 17 29
HALKIRK UNITED 15 9 1 5 53 25 28
ALNESS UNITED 15 4 2 9 38 38 14
INVERGORDON 16 2 3 11 34 49 9
BUNILLIDH THISTLE 15 2 2 11 18 71 8
DORNOCH 16 2 0 14 26 89 6
Thurso’s North Caley League title hopes still hang by a thread as they prepare for their final match away to Balintore tomorrow.
The Vikings could well to live to rue their two early season home defeats to Balintore and Golspie.
Though they have lost just once in the league since, the championship remains Golspie’s to lose.
The Sutherland side require four points from their two outstanding fixtures, away to Alness tomorrow and at home to Bunillidh the following week.
Their target however could well be much easier or even attained were Thurso to drop points tomorrow.
They kept the race alive following their decisive win over Alness on Saturday.
It avenged two previous two defeats by the Easter Ross outfit who have in the meantime gone off the rails.
The contest was alive and well in the first half when the visitors were a shade unlucky to find themselves two down.
Had they converted a penalty shortly before the turnaround, the game may well have taken a different turn.
But Mark Nichol’s first instalment of a hat-trick a minute after the interval effectively signalled the end of Alness’s challenge.
Alness were encouraged by early signs of hesitancy in Thurso’s defence with winger Gary Calvert causing concern with his probes down both flanks.
Thurso striker Des MacLeod’s neat flick produced the first opening after 10 minutes for Jamie Mackenzie.
Mackenzie’s strike was true enough but it was snuffed out by a valiant block by defender Robert MacAskill.
Three minutes later, Jamie Mackenzie set up Lee MacDougall for a crack at goal which keeper Michael MacCallum turned behind.
From the corner, a partial clearance deflected off Willie Inrig to MacLeod who netted from close range.
The goal stood despite vociferous protests that the ball had struck Inrig on the arm.
Though having few outright chances, Alness were very much in the game and seeing plenty of the ball.
After 23 minutes, Calvert created space for a powerful, low shot which Thurso keeper Asa Sinclair did well to hold at the first attempt.
Two minutes later, Thurso doubled their lead after a swift counter sparked by Kevin Miller dispossessing an opponent on the halfway line.
The ball fell to Bremner who plied through the undefended central channel before unleashing a shot from 25 yards,
It should have been dealt with by MacCallum but he only succeeded in checking the flight off the ball with a two-handed, overhead parry.
But for the sticky surface, the ball could well have had the momentum to cross the line as the keeper furiously backtracked.
His attempt to regather was foiled by the inrushing MacLeod.
Alness could feel aggrieved by the score-line, given their contribution up to that point.
Sinclair was called into action on 37 minutes to deal with a snap-shot from Kenny Lyall.
A minute later, MacLeod almost got his hat-trick when his swerving shot from just outside the penalty box went narrowly past.
Calvert had a buzz-bomb presence and it was he who created his side’s golden opportunity to get back into the contest.
His mazy run took him clear until he was clipped from behind by Miller.
The contact looked just outside the box but ref Mark Dalton saw it differently.
Michael Dunnett’s run-up sent Sinclair diving the wrong way but the spot-kick smacked off the outside of the left upright.
Miller escaped with a ticking-off for the foul but two minutes later was cautioned for a block on Calvert.
A minute from the break, a marvellous long-range pass from Graeme Reid put Nichol in the clear but he could not find a way past MacCallum.
Alness were rocked a minute after the turnaround when they again lost possession in a vulnerable area and Jamie Mackenzie fed Nichol who this time steered a side-foot shot past MacCallum.
Sinclair had a faultless afternoon apart from a botched clearance on 47 minutes.
Lyall was first to react with his shot being blocked before Dunnett’s minuts follow-up was comfortably cleared off the line.
Thurso were now in cruise control as the Alness midfield effort waned and the side appeared to lose heart.
MacLeod had a decent effort turned away by MacCallum before the keeper’s brainstorm led to Thurso’s fourth after 55 minutes.
MacCallum’s attempted wide return pass to MacAskill was spotted by Reid whose challenge succeeded in diverting the ball into the net.
Six minutes later, MacDougall’s hanging cross produced a copybook header by Nichol past MacCallum into the right side-net.
In one of the visitors’ very few attacks after the break, Sinclair did well to turn a vicious, inswinging corner from Kenneth Wright over the bar.
Sub Martin Bain made an early impact with his run down the right ending with across which deserved better than MacLeod’s tame shot which was easily gathered by MacCallum.
As with the previous week’s victory over Bunillidh, the Vikings finished with a late goal flourish.
MacDougall claimed the goal of the game on 86 minutes with a 25 yarder which scorched past MacCallum.
A minute later, Nichol was fouled in the box but managed to stay up to net from a tight angle.
Mr Dalton had however already awarded the penalty, which Nichol duly took and converted.
The hat-trick strengthens the striker’s claim to finish as the league’s top scorer.
Alness manager Alan Brindle had no complaints about being beaten though he thought the scoreline was a bit unfair on his troops.
He said: “If we had scored the penalty, that would have put us right back in the game.
“We’re just not getting the breaks at the moment and after Thurso started to pull away, our heads went down a bit.
“Even so, I think 3 or 4-0 would have been a fairer score.”
Thurso – Sinclair, Reid, Miller (Michael Steven 60), P.Makhouli (Forbes 73), Inrig, Bremner, N. Mackenzie (Bain 67), J. Mackenzie, Nichol, MacLeod, MacDougall.
Alness – MacCallum, MacAskill (Muir 55), Smith, Murray (Bremner 15), Dingwall, Lyall, Gair, MacLeod, Wright, Dunnett, Calvert.
Ref – Mr M. Dalton, Nairn.
Golspie closed in on the title on the Saturday with a 3-1 win at home to neighbours Dornoch.
Colin Doull added to first half strikes from Donald Sutherland and Shaun Kerr (pen) before Chris Campbell pulled a goal back.
The opening match in the Football Times Cup saw holders Invergordon crash out 3-0 to Balintore in a first round match.
Steve MacCallum, John Skinner (pen) and Ewan Dance got the goals.
NORTH CALEDONIAN LEAGUE P W D L F A Pts
THURSO 15 12 0 3 55 22 36
GOLSPIE 14 12 0 2 40 17 36
INVERNESS CITY 16 10 2 4 46 29 32
BALINTORE 14 9 2 3 47 17 29
HALKIRK UNITED 15 9 1 5 53 25 28
ALNESS UNITED 15 4 2 9 38 38 14
INVERGORDON 16 2 3 11 34 49 9
BUNILLIDH THISTLE 15 2 2 11 18 71 8
DORNOCH 16 2 0 14 26 89 6