Unlucky Formartine United drop points against Brechin City

Brechin City…………………….3 Formartine United…………1
All 10 outfield players celebrate Julian Wade's equaliser. (Photo: Ian Rennie)All 10 outfield players celebrate Julian Wade's equaliser. (Photo: Ian Rennie)
All 10 outfield players celebrate Julian Wade's equaliser. (Photo: Ian Rennie)

Curiously Formartine’s closest rivals in their hunt for SHFL success are all “B’s – Brora, Buckie, Brechin and the Broch – and this trip to Glebe park came possibly a little earlier than this reconstructed version of United or its new management team would have wished.

It came on the back of a storming win against Buckie in the Aberdeenshire Cup and the routing of Strathspey in the league. It also came with a back 4 with two changes from the one that resisted Buckie so sucessfully.

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Brechin set out to hit as hard and early as they could and elected to try their luck down the right side with Bain and Scott combining in an attempt to set up the latter for an incursion to the United box in the second minute.

Aaron Norris and Grady McGrath tussle for the ball (Photo: Ian Rennie)Aaron Norris and Grady McGrath tussle for the ball (Photo: Ian Rennie)
Aaron Norris and Grady McGrath tussle for the ball (Photo: Ian Rennie)

Spink and Maclean saw them off before a similar move had a similar conclusion. There was no discernible reason for Brechin’s partiality for the right flank but in the 6th minute it paid off for them when McGrath fed Scott from the right side of the box for a crack at goal that he drove right to left low beyond the reach of Macdonald from around 12 yards out.

It had taken them 6 minutes to establish a lead they held for only as long as it had taken them to achieve in the first place. In the 12th minute “Ju Ju” Wade set both the match and Formartine hopes alight with an absolutely stunning finish from at least 25 yards out.

Clocking the keeper a step forward of his back stick he leathered the ball with blistering pace and absolute precision straight past him and into the topmost corner of the net. That was as good a finish as anyone will see at any level.

That set things up for a period of attack and counter attack with play confined predominantly to the area between the boxes with neither side establishing significant advantage as each tried to establish a high backline only to be thwarted by pressure from the other.

Tyler Mykyta and Marc Scott (Photo: Ian Rennie)Tyler Mykyta and Marc Scott (Photo: Ian Rennie)
Tyler Mykyta and Marc Scott (Photo: Ian Rennie)

Brechin persisted in investing their attacking efforts down the right with Scott the architect of most of their moves. On the other side of the park Norris had some success in breaking forward from deeper areas but Brechin were well enough organised to resist any attacks being sustained through many phases.

They had their best period around the half hour mark and although attacks were more episodic than consistent they did manage to establish the final scoreline before the interval.

In the 29th minute they forced a couple of corners on the right, the second of which was floated over a densely populated penalty area by wing back Bain for McGrath to glance his header right to left beyond the diving Macdonald and regain the lead. At the other end a Mykyta drive from the edge of the box slipped past the base of Wilson’s left stick.

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The final score line was established in the 37th minute with a rather fortunate (or unfortunate depending on your allegiance) own goal.

Marc Scott and Ryan Spink (Photo: Ian Rennie)Marc Scott and Ryan Spink (Photo: Ian Rennie)
Marc Scott and Ryan Spink (Photo: Ian Rennie)

Northcott was the beneficiary of a cut back from Scott on the right side of the box. From a slightly left of centre position he banged the ball goalward no higher than head height. Macdonald got enough on the ball to deflect it onto his right upright from which the ball rebounded, hit his left shoulder and ended in the net.

The second half consisted larglely of an evenly matched and closely contested midfield battle.

Brechin were giving nothing away and with Spark marshalling a rearguard intent on and largely successful in denying United access to the inner sanctum of the penalty area the graft of a never say die Formartine was never rewarded.

This was an encouraging performance from a United side that is clearly on its way forward but may need some more time and games under their belts before fulfilling their obvious potential.

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