Post by Brian Mackay on Aug 6, 2006 23:22:52 GMT
Scotads Highland League - 05 08 2006
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Fort William 2 v 4 Wick Academy
Wick goals by Gary Farquhar and Martin Gunn (3)
at Claggan Park, Fort William - 3 p.m
Other scores
##########
Brora Rangers 1 v 3 Keith
Cove Rangers 1 v 2 Clachnacuddin
Deveronvale 7 v 2 Nairn County
Forres Mechanics 0 v 1 Inverurie Loco Works
Huntly 3 v 4 Rothes
Lossiemouth 0 v 1 Buckie Thistle
Wick Academy report from www.highlandleague.net :-
Fort come back well but are beaten by the Gunn 05-Aug-2006
Martin Gunn was Wick's hero as he netted a second half hat-trick to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 win at Claggan Park with brave Fort coming close to gaining an opening day victory.
Wick were given a chance to take the lead when Ryan Haggerty was penalised in the area for a hand ball from a Martin Gunn cross. Gary Farquhar almost saw his penalty saved by the diving Willie Ridgers but his hand wasnt strong enough to keep out the penalty.
20 minutes in Wick almost doubled the lead when a long ball was flicked on by Gary Weir to Martin Gunn who superbly volleyed from 40 yards but struck the crossbar. At the other end Charles Fonneban came close when he ran on to a long ball which he poked the ball over the keeper only to see it go wide.
Fort equalised when a well worked short corner was delivered by Ryan Haggerty was flicked on at the near post and found Scott Barlow 10 yards out to head home to ensure the two teams went in on level terms at the break.
On the hour Fort took the lead. Charles Fonneban was in the middle of the action again was brought down in the box by an on rushing Daniel Bell. Mo Macmillan coolly sent the keeper the wrong way and slotted into the bottom right.
A Graeme Reid cross from the right was side footed into the roof of the net by makeshift striker Martin Gunn who was to go on to turn the game on its head. Ten minutes from time Gunn ran from the half way line unmarked. He ran free and unleashed a shot from the edge of the area which left the keeper standing To give Wick the lead.
Wick sealed the victory in the final minute when Martin Gunn intercepted Ryan Haggerty's passss and progressed into the edge of the area and unleashed a shot low in to net to seal his hat-trick and the win.
Full Time: Fort William 2 Wick Academy 4
Reporter: Brad Flannigan
report from JOG Journal website
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Gunn hat-trick shoots down Fort’s hopes
Fort William 2, Wick Academy 4
Published: 09 August, 2006
ON a close sultry day at Claggan Park, Wick Academy made heavy weather of their opening Scot-Ads Highland League fixture until a hat-trick from Martin Gunn in the last 20 minutes earned the three points.
Academy had an early chance when Gary Weir tapped a bouncing through ball from Andrew MacLeod past Fort keeper Willie Ridgers who had dashed forward to his 18 yard line. Mo MacMillan was on hand to kick the ball away.
However by the 8th minute the home side showed that despite pre-season problems they were not going to be a push-over. Mark Dougall tried to pick out Jonathan Hewitt with a high cross from the right and Graeme Reid, alert to the danger, headed the ball out for a corner on the Fort left. After a few passes the ball came over to Charles Fonweban whose header was comfortably caught by keeper Daniel Bell. As Academy struggled to find their rhythm they conceded two free kicks. The first a 35-yarder from Scott Barlow and from the second Jamie Mackay pulled his 25-yard shot just wide of the target.
In the 15th minute Manson broke forward on the Academy left and flighted a tantalising cross towards Richard Macadie who was cutting in from the right. The ball appeared to bounce against Thomas Crosbie’s hand but referee Graham Fraser waved aside claims for a penalty. When Fort launched a quick counter-attack Fonweban scooped his shot wide.
Weir latched on to a loose ball in his own half, bustled his way forward and passed to Macadie on the right. The ex-Ross County youngster sent the ball square into the middle just inside the 18-yard line where Ryan Haggerty handled it. Gary Farquhar stepped forward to drive in the penalty. Ridgers, diving low to his left, touched the ball but could not prevent it nestling in the bottom corner of his net.
Weir was tripped by Donald Horsburgh as he ran up the left on to a Manson pass. Craig Shearer stretched forward to head the ball from Manson’s free kick but directed it wide of the back post.
In the 22nd minute Weir, under pressure from two defenders at the front edge of the Fort area controlled a delightful through ball from Macleod and cushioned it to his right into the path of Gunn. The Wick skipper’s 20-yard volley smacked against the top edge of the crossbar and spun high into the air. Ridgers lofted the goal kick high downfield and there was a scare for Academy as it bounced on the 18-yard line. As Macleod and Bell hesitated, Fonweban was first to the ball, hooked it over Bell’s right shoulder but could only watch in disappointment as it bounced inches wide of the post.
The whole Academy team dropped deeper and deeper into their own half with even lone front-runner Weir operating mainly near the halfway line. On the half hour mark he did break free and set up another long range chance for Gunn whose low shot was deflected for the first Wick corner. Macadie’s first cross to the near post was cleared for a second corner which he this time drove across to the back post where keeper Ridgers punched it away from the head of Shearer. The home side grew in confidence and it was no surprise when they equalised in the 36th minute. A corner on the left was pushed back short to Haggerty who chipped towards the goalmouth. Scott Barlow ran in unchallenged at the near post and his header deflected the ball just enough to deceive Bell.
Approaching half-time Alex Lamb brought some respite when he chased a pass from Weir into the Fort area but the ball ran out for a goal kick. At the other end Jonathan Hewitt made a quick break and passed to Fonweban who, with his first touch, swept the ball ahead of Dougall and David Mowat made a tackle in the nick of time. Academy almost regained the lead a couple of minutes after the break when from a corner on the left Macadie dropped the ball into the goalmouth. Weir, Reid and Macleod were all on or around the six-yard line but the ball bounced past them at waist height with Ridgers rooted to his line. Fort continued to enjoy most of the possession and Gunn was booked for kicking the ball away in frustration.
At last Academy attacked in numbers and a timely interception from Crosbie deflected the ball towards the Fort goal where Ridgers picked it up. Manson was booked for dissent, presumably for trying to insist on a free kick for a pass-back. The keeper then smothered the ball on his six yard line at the feet of Gunn.
The Lochaber lads almost took the lead from a corner on their left. Fonweban directed a 15-yard header into the goalmouth where MacMillan tried to nod it past Bell but sent it looping over the bar.
With an hour played Manson twice tested Ridgers, first with a stinging 20-yard drive from the left and then a straight low shot from 25 yards which the keeper gathered at the second attempt.
However, this brief good spell counted for nothing and Fort William delighted their fans by taking the lead. Fonweban raced into the area chased by Reid and Macleod who tackled the striker from behind near the penalty spot as he took aim. MacMillan slotted in the penalty kick low to Bell’s left.
Coaches Richard Hughes and Ian Munro opted for a more attacking formation to deal with that setback, moving Macadie to the centre of midfield and introducing Shaun Sinclair on the right.
Within four minutes the move was rewarded when Sinclair sprinted down the touchline, cut in past Crosbie and from his well directed cross, Gunn volleyed the ball first time into the back of the net for an equalising goal.
Wick’s Richard Macadie holds off Donald Horsburgh.
In the next minute Macadie broke through on the left and drove the ball low towards the back post. Ridgers made just enough contact with his finger tips to deflect it for a corner.
In the 78th minute Academy regained the lead at 3-2 when Macleod drilled the ball forward from a crowded midfield area and Gunn raced into the Fort half past a couple of defenders. He tapped it towards the 18-yard line and sprinted on to lash an unstoppable effort past Ridgers.
A pass to the right touchline by Stewart Ross allowed Sinclair to again attack on the overlap. This time from his cross Gunn’s 10-yard volley was blocked at point blank range.
Teenage substitute Martin Bain won the ball on the halfway line and ran 30 yards along the left touch-line before supplying a perfect low cross to Gunn who completed his hat-trick by drilling the ball low to Ridgers’ left into the corner of the net.
If Fort William harboured any vague hopes of a late fight back they were dashed by Ross who walked the ball forward to the corner flag to play out time.
On a day when Weir was celebrating his 19th birthday and Manson and Reid respectively their 150th and 100th league games, it was Gunn who eventually stole the show with the fourth hat-trick of his Academy career.
Despite some reservations about their team’s performance during the first three quarters of the game, Wick Academy coaches Richard Hughes and Ian Munro were delighted with the result. The two-goal winning margin was a repeat of the success they had enjoyed the last time they were in charge also at fort William back in May.
Hughes said after the game. “It was rather scrappy in the first half but credit to Fort William who closed us down and did not let us rest on the ball so that we were unable to play our usual passing game. Our 4-4-1-1 formation was not working so we had to adopt a more attack-minded approach with a 3-5-2. We moved Richard Macadie to the centre of midfield to link up with our forwards and substitutes Stewart Ross and especially Shaun Sinclair changed the game for us. Martin Gunn took his goals well and we were pleased to go on to win the game in the last 20 minutes. When I spoke to the boss (Academy manager) Peter Budge on the phone immediately after the game he said he was pleased for Zeekie (Ian Munro) and myself. We will be a trio again for the training sessions ahead of the Deveronvale game so we will work on sorting out the little things that did not go right at Fort William.”
John Haggerty, acting manager for Fort William said. “I though we dominated play in the first half and after we went 2-1 up we could have gone on to win. But all credit to the Wick coaches. They changed the shape of their team and, with Martin Gunn up front, scored the goals to win the three points. Wick’s superior fitness also told in the end — we were a yard short in the last ten or fifteen minutes.”
Fort William: Ridgers, Horsburgh, Crosbie, Russell, MacMillan, Dougall, Hewitt (Danikiewicz 67), Haggerty, Fonweban (Matandela 75), Mackay (Sanderson 83), Barlow Unused subs: Nisbet, Poupard.
Wick Academy: Bell, Reid (Shaun Sinclair 67), Lamb, Mowat, Macleod, Shearer, Gunn, Farquhar, Weir (Ross 51), Macadie, Manson (Bain 82)
Referee: G. Fraser.
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Fort William 2 v 4 Wick Academy
Wick goals by Gary Farquhar and Martin Gunn (3)
at Claggan Park, Fort William - 3 p.m
Other scores
##########
Brora Rangers 1 v 3 Keith
Cove Rangers 1 v 2 Clachnacuddin
Deveronvale 7 v 2 Nairn County
Forres Mechanics 0 v 1 Inverurie Loco Works
Huntly 3 v 4 Rothes
Lossiemouth 0 v 1 Buckie Thistle
Wick Academy report from www.highlandleague.net :-
Fort come back well but are beaten by the Gunn 05-Aug-2006
Martin Gunn was Wick's hero as he netted a second half hat-trick to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 win at Claggan Park with brave Fort coming close to gaining an opening day victory.
Wick were given a chance to take the lead when Ryan Haggerty was penalised in the area for a hand ball from a Martin Gunn cross. Gary Farquhar almost saw his penalty saved by the diving Willie Ridgers but his hand wasnt strong enough to keep out the penalty.
20 minutes in Wick almost doubled the lead when a long ball was flicked on by Gary Weir to Martin Gunn who superbly volleyed from 40 yards but struck the crossbar. At the other end Charles Fonneban came close when he ran on to a long ball which he poked the ball over the keeper only to see it go wide.
Fort equalised when a well worked short corner was delivered by Ryan Haggerty was flicked on at the near post and found Scott Barlow 10 yards out to head home to ensure the two teams went in on level terms at the break.
On the hour Fort took the lead. Charles Fonneban was in the middle of the action again was brought down in the box by an on rushing Daniel Bell. Mo Macmillan coolly sent the keeper the wrong way and slotted into the bottom right.
A Graeme Reid cross from the right was side footed into the roof of the net by makeshift striker Martin Gunn who was to go on to turn the game on its head. Ten minutes from time Gunn ran from the half way line unmarked. He ran free and unleashed a shot from the edge of the area which left the keeper standing To give Wick the lead.
Wick sealed the victory in the final minute when Martin Gunn intercepted Ryan Haggerty's passss and progressed into the edge of the area and unleashed a shot low in to net to seal his hat-trick and the win.
Full Time: Fort William 2 Wick Academy 4
Reporter: Brad Flannigan
report from JOG Journal website
#######################
Gunn hat-trick shoots down Fort’s hopes
Fort William 2, Wick Academy 4
Published: 09 August, 2006
ON a close sultry day at Claggan Park, Wick Academy made heavy weather of their opening Scot-Ads Highland League fixture until a hat-trick from Martin Gunn in the last 20 minutes earned the three points.
Academy had an early chance when Gary Weir tapped a bouncing through ball from Andrew MacLeod past Fort keeper Willie Ridgers who had dashed forward to his 18 yard line. Mo MacMillan was on hand to kick the ball away.
However by the 8th minute the home side showed that despite pre-season problems they were not going to be a push-over. Mark Dougall tried to pick out Jonathan Hewitt with a high cross from the right and Graeme Reid, alert to the danger, headed the ball out for a corner on the Fort left. After a few passes the ball came over to Charles Fonweban whose header was comfortably caught by keeper Daniel Bell. As Academy struggled to find their rhythm they conceded two free kicks. The first a 35-yarder from Scott Barlow and from the second Jamie Mackay pulled his 25-yard shot just wide of the target.
In the 15th minute Manson broke forward on the Academy left and flighted a tantalising cross towards Richard Macadie who was cutting in from the right. The ball appeared to bounce against Thomas Crosbie’s hand but referee Graham Fraser waved aside claims for a penalty. When Fort launched a quick counter-attack Fonweban scooped his shot wide.
Weir latched on to a loose ball in his own half, bustled his way forward and passed to Macadie on the right. The ex-Ross County youngster sent the ball square into the middle just inside the 18-yard line where Ryan Haggerty handled it. Gary Farquhar stepped forward to drive in the penalty. Ridgers, diving low to his left, touched the ball but could not prevent it nestling in the bottom corner of his net.
Weir was tripped by Donald Horsburgh as he ran up the left on to a Manson pass. Craig Shearer stretched forward to head the ball from Manson’s free kick but directed it wide of the back post.
In the 22nd minute Weir, under pressure from two defenders at the front edge of the Fort area controlled a delightful through ball from Macleod and cushioned it to his right into the path of Gunn. The Wick skipper’s 20-yard volley smacked against the top edge of the crossbar and spun high into the air. Ridgers lofted the goal kick high downfield and there was a scare for Academy as it bounced on the 18-yard line. As Macleod and Bell hesitated, Fonweban was first to the ball, hooked it over Bell’s right shoulder but could only watch in disappointment as it bounced inches wide of the post.
The whole Academy team dropped deeper and deeper into their own half with even lone front-runner Weir operating mainly near the halfway line. On the half hour mark he did break free and set up another long range chance for Gunn whose low shot was deflected for the first Wick corner. Macadie’s first cross to the near post was cleared for a second corner which he this time drove across to the back post where keeper Ridgers punched it away from the head of Shearer. The home side grew in confidence and it was no surprise when they equalised in the 36th minute. A corner on the left was pushed back short to Haggerty who chipped towards the goalmouth. Scott Barlow ran in unchallenged at the near post and his header deflected the ball just enough to deceive Bell.
Approaching half-time Alex Lamb brought some respite when he chased a pass from Weir into the Fort area but the ball ran out for a goal kick. At the other end Jonathan Hewitt made a quick break and passed to Fonweban who, with his first touch, swept the ball ahead of Dougall and David Mowat made a tackle in the nick of time. Academy almost regained the lead a couple of minutes after the break when from a corner on the left Macadie dropped the ball into the goalmouth. Weir, Reid and Macleod were all on or around the six-yard line but the ball bounced past them at waist height with Ridgers rooted to his line. Fort continued to enjoy most of the possession and Gunn was booked for kicking the ball away in frustration.
At last Academy attacked in numbers and a timely interception from Crosbie deflected the ball towards the Fort goal where Ridgers picked it up. Manson was booked for dissent, presumably for trying to insist on a free kick for a pass-back. The keeper then smothered the ball on his six yard line at the feet of Gunn.
The Lochaber lads almost took the lead from a corner on their left. Fonweban directed a 15-yard header into the goalmouth where MacMillan tried to nod it past Bell but sent it looping over the bar.
With an hour played Manson twice tested Ridgers, first with a stinging 20-yard drive from the left and then a straight low shot from 25 yards which the keeper gathered at the second attempt.
However, this brief good spell counted for nothing and Fort William delighted their fans by taking the lead. Fonweban raced into the area chased by Reid and Macleod who tackled the striker from behind near the penalty spot as he took aim. MacMillan slotted in the penalty kick low to Bell’s left.
Coaches Richard Hughes and Ian Munro opted for a more attacking formation to deal with that setback, moving Macadie to the centre of midfield and introducing Shaun Sinclair on the right.
Within four minutes the move was rewarded when Sinclair sprinted down the touchline, cut in past Crosbie and from his well directed cross, Gunn volleyed the ball first time into the back of the net for an equalising goal.
Wick’s Richard Macadie holds off Donald Horsburgh.
In the next minute Macadie broke through on the left and drove the ball low towards the back post. Ridgers made just enough contact with his finger tips to deflect it for a corner.
In the 78th minute Academy regained the lead at 3-2 when Macleod drilled the ball forward from a crowded midfield area and Gunn raced into the Fort half past a couple of defenders. He tapped it towards the 18-yard line and sprinted on to lash an unstoppable effort past Ridgers.
A pass to the right touchline by Stewart Ross allowed Sinclair to again attack on the overlap. This time from his cross Gunn’s 10-yard volley was blocked at point blank range.
Teenage substitute Martin Bain won the ball on the halfway line and ran 30 yards along the left touch-line before supplying a perfect low cross to Gunn who completed his hat-trick by drilling the ball low to Ridgers’ left into the corner of the net.
If Fort William harboured any vague hopes of a late fight back they were dashed by Ross who walked the ball forward to the corner flag to play out time.
On a day when Weir was celebrating his 19th birthday and Manson and Reid respectively their 150th and 100th league games, it was Gunn who eventually stole the show with the fourth hat-trick of his Academy career.
Despite some reservations about their team’s performance during the first three quarters of the game, Wick Academy coaches Richard Hughes and Ian Munro were delighted with the result. The two-goal winning margin was a repeat of the success they had enjoyed the last time they were in charge also at fort William back in May.
Hughes said after the game. “It was rather scrappy in the first half but credit to Fort William who closed us down and did not let us rest on the ball so that we were unable to play our usual passing game. Our 4-4-1-1 formation was not working so we had to adopt a more attack-minded approach with a 3-5-2. We moved Richard Macadie to the centre of midfield to link up with our forwards and substitutes Stewart Ross and especially Shaun Sinclair changed the game for us. Martin Gunn took his goals well and we were pleased to go on to win the game in the last 20 minutes. When I spoke to the boss (Academy manager) Peter Budge on the phone immediately after the game he said he was pleased for Zeekie (Ian Munro) and myself. We will be a trio again for the training sessions ahead of the Deveronvale game so we will work on sorting out the little things that did not go right at Fort William.”
John Haggerty, acting manager for Fort William said. “I though we dominated play in the first half and after we went 2-1 up we could have gone on to win. But all credit to the Wick coaches. They changed the shape of their team and, with Martin Gunn up front, scored the goals to win the three points. Wick’s superior fitness also told in the end — we were a yard short in the last ten or fifteen minutes.”
Fort William: Ridgers, Horsburgh, Crosbie, Russell, MacMillan, Dougall, Hewitt (Danikiewicz 67), Haggerty, Fonweban (Matandela 75), Mackay (Sanderson 83), Barlow Unused subs: Nisbet, Poupard.
Wick Academy: Bell, Reid (Shaun Sinclair 67), Lamb, Mowat, Macleod, Shearer, Gunn, Farquhar, Weir (Ross 51), Macadie, Manson (Bain 82)
Referee: G. Fraser.