Inverurie Locos3–1Formartine United

These derbies at Harlaw park have a disconcerting habit of throwing up bizarre events and situations, and for some reason these almost always involve goal keepers. This one ran true to form. A couple of years back there was the infamous five goalie game when Andy Reid and Ewen MacDonald, both playing for United then, were red carded for controversial out of box fouls. This one featured both these keepers again but this time Andy Reid now plying his trade at Locos, featured almost as dramatically by conceding one and saving two penalty kicks and all of this came after Ewen MacDonald was withdrawn from the other goal with a head knock before two minutes of play had completed.

Teams need no firing up in advance of these derbies – local bragging rights are at stake and last time out (at North Lodge Park) United utterly steamrollered their adversaries with a 5 -0 victory. The desire for revenge this time eventually overcame the celebration of the previous weeks cup final victory as a very determined looking Locos side continued their recent run of good form to perform major surgery to the league table by easing into third position (three points off the lead) and consigning United into the distinctly average looking mid-table ranking of 7th place.

Locos were the first to show with a move down the left through Leyden who got the ball across to Hunter who was met near the edge of the box by MacDonald who bravely went down at the forwards feet where he sustained the head knock that led to his removal for health and safety reasons. He did look quite out of it initially although there did not appear to be any lasting damage when he took up a seat in the stand later in the game.
Sim was a perfectly capable replacement and produced a strong performance for the remaining 88 minutes.

Within a minute of this, United were on the attack and generated enough pressure to win the first corner of the game on the left. The ball was struck in-swinging to a fair ruck of players in the goalmouth. Keeper Reid sought the aid of his former team mate Barbours shoulders to simultaneously keep the wee forward down and raise himself above all the rest to reach the ball and punch it away to the right. Ref Duncan spotted it and gave what was in the circumstances a softish but gratefully received penalty. Archie MacPhee took the kick, driving it low to Reids left but the keeper had guessed correctly and was there to grab the ball which was not as far to the keepers left as the taker would have wished.

Losing a keeper and missing a penalty all in less than three minutes seemed to put United aff their stot for a while and Locos for the next twenty minutes or so were largely calling the shots. They generally had the better of midfield where Formartine usually quite strong in that department, sometimes looked, or were made to look, rather shapeless and although Rodger, MacPhee, Ferries and Anderson worked away they didn not generally look quite as sharp or influential as usual. The standout player in that neck of the Woods was Locos captain, veteran Neil Maclean. There was not all that much in it but it was perfectly clear from early on that this Locos team was a lot sharper than the one United faced in the first game of the season. This possession yielded some pressure and Sim had to deal with a couple of angled drives, one from each side, by Gauld, a fifteen yard shot on the turn by Hunter and a longer range effort by Maclean.

During this period the United defence looked steady enough and by the mid point of the half United were beginning to mount and sustain some attacks of their own. Ferries broke into the box a bit left of centre and with decent sight of goal was brought down when Maclean breenged at him with a forearm in the back. The ref bizarrely construed this as dive by the youngster and booked him for simulation. If the penalty awarded seemed soft, the one that was not seemed a more clear cut affair and the booking harsher still.

It was beginning to look like it was not to be Formartines day a perception furthered by the opening goal in the 33rd minute. Anderson in possession on the right about forty yards out from his own goal, was bundled off the ball by the judicious application of Duffs elbow to his throat and as the United captain hit the deck the ball broke to MacLean who picked it up, accelerated with it to a position twenty yards out, left centre and drilled it beyond the reach of Sim to establish a lead that Locos held firmly to until the interval.

United started the second period with a bit more of a buzz about them and initially took the game to Locos. Barbour got the better of Rennie and although squeezed near the bye line still got enough of an angle to get the ball across the goal face where Broadhurst managed to divert the ball away from the predatory Wood. Locos were swift to counter attack and quickly had the ball in dangerous territory where Sim did well to take a drive by Gauld at the second attempt.

United chasing the game were vulnerable to counter attacks and the match was ultimately determined by two of them in relatively short order. A period of offence where United had forced two corners in succession left them with both central defenders up in attacking positions and scant protection at the back when Hunter made a run through the middle with defenders piling back but not really being able either to close him down or get their own shape going, he spotted the run of GAULD on his right and slipped the ball into his path before a tackle could be made and the former United striker did the rest by scorching forward to the right side of the box and from 18 yards out leathering the ball beyond the advancing Sim into the other corner of the net in the 63th minute.

United were in deep trouble by now - not only had Locos got a two goal lead - the momentum of the game was rolling with them. The game went finally beyond their reach with a third goal that had sad similarities to the second – again it was a sucker punch following a period of United pressure. The ball out of defence was picked up by McLean and slipped right to Gauld in the inside right channel and carried quickly forward before being laid into the path of HUNTER who drove on and from wideish right banged the ball home in the 69th minute.

United continued to press and five minutes later were handed a glimmer of hope. An Anderson free kick about 35 yards out was played centre to left into the box and Henrys header rebounded from the upright to the deck across the goal line before being grabbed by Reid. The ball had crossed the line and the goal was given. Could United salvage anything in the last 15 minutes or so. A clumsy challenge by Broadhurst brought down Rodger in the box. A change of penalty taker from MacPhee to Wood was to no avail nor was Woods choice to try the right side of keeper Reid who guessed right again and blocked the ball at the base of the upright.

That was all that Locos needed to apply endgame strategy by keeping the ball in wide areas and running down the clock until the end.