Appearances & Goals To Date

Ewen MacDonald (GK)		63 apps	-
Jevan Anderson		71 apps	3 goals
Johnny Crawford		129 apps	9 goals
Craig McKeown		114 apps	19 goals
Stuart Smith		233 apps	23 goals
Andrew Greig		59 apps	22 goals
Graeme Rodger		180 apps	62 goals
Gary McGowan		2 apps	3 goals
Conor Gethins		104 apps	42 goals
Aaron Norris		28 apps	2 goals
Kieran Lawrence		55 apps	2 goals
Wayne Mackintosh (sub)		45 apps	6 goals
Liam Burnett (sub)		74 apps	8 goals
Jordan Leydon (sub)		3 apps	-

Starting Lineup

Matchday Squad

First Team Debuts

Milestones

United are in the midst of a congested run of fixtures, including a cup final ten days after this game and it was no surprise to see that manager Lawson was relying on the depth of his substantial pool of players to spread the load over the period. In fact a close inspection of those listed as subs for this game is as likely to provide clues to the starting line up for the cup final against Cove as consideration of the starting eleven here. On the bench were captain Stuart Anderson, keeper Kevin Main, striker Garry Wood, top goal scorer Archie MacPhee and midfield ball winner Wayne Mackintosh. Most if not all of these are favoured to start in the cup final.

United started this game at a frantic pace and initially it looked like they would quickly put Strathspey to the sword. They pressed them down the right as right back Crawford linked with McGowan and Norris to work the ball into the area near the right corner flag and managed to keep pressure in that general area for a couple of minutes before Mochan and Duncan succeeded between them in clearing the ball to safer territory in midfield. United were persistent. Gethins popped up in the 4th minute to ping a crisp shot on the turn from a Greig cross from his left and keeper Hunter, who seemed to see it late, just got the ball away over top to safety. The ensuing corner caused a fair flap round the base of his right up right before Mochan relieved the pressure with a mighty hoof up the park.

Formartine were working the visiting defenders hard but they in turn were big, strong and well organised and worked well to protect their rather nervous looking keeper. In the 7th minute an attack down the left instigated by Greig and drawing in Norris produced an in-swinging cross that Anderson headed narrowly over the top. United were definitely calling the shots at this stage. However they were not having it all their own way and Thistle showed that they had the appetite and capacity to mount quickfire attacks based on moving the ball quickly from back to front and in the 9th minute Fraser and Naismith exchanged passes after being fed the ball from behind by Mochan. As Naismith shaped to shoot from 25 yards out he was illegally challenged by Anderson. He took the free kick himself, the ball rebounded from the wall to Innes whose thumping shot on the volley made home keeper MacDonald work for his keep with a diving save down to his right.

United pressed again but in the 13th minute Thistle mounted another breakaway counter this time down the right flank. Lisle thumped an awkward bobbling kind of ball into the United box and it broke loose within the six yard area and spun over
in the direction of Graham who was attacking the back post area. The keeper elected to pursue the ball and diving between the advancing forward and the ball brought down the Thistle player before either could reach the ball. McSHANE struck the inevitable penalty firmly home low to the keeper's right.

That geed up the visitors no end and they entered their best spell of the game which they maintained (despite conceding an equaliser) until at least half time. United tried to press them but Thistle winning at least their fair share of second balls at this stage and maintaining good shape and discipline particularly in their back 4 made life difficult for United. In the 20th minute they came close to doubling their lead when having lured keeper MacDonald into a fair stravaig over towards the right corner Rennie managed to get the ball to Lisle whose shot towards the un-keepered goal brought a desperate but successful saving header as Jevan Anderson put the ball over his own cross bar to the relative safety of a corner kick.

McGowan and Greig are both very quick over the ground and were so hard to pin down that something had to give and in the 23rd minute it did. United equalised when a foray down the left by full back Smith initiated an exchange of passes between him and Greig before the latter was able to cross the ball into the box as McGOWAN outstripped his markers to deliver a perfect glancing header to knock the ball left to right into the far corner of the net from about 8 yards out.

The game morphed into a much more midfield encounter after this and while United were probably the slightly more skilled side, Strathspey worked hard enough to deny them any significant advantage and they certainly won at least their fair share of second balls. This phase continued until the change of ends saw United resume their offensive in much the same way as they had started the first ten minute of the previous half. The tempo was blistering and it became apparent that United's slightly superior possession in midfield and at the back earlier own had sapped some energy from the visitors. It didn't show too much to begin with but it was enough to swing the game distinctly United's way.

Two lethal poacher's goals in as many minutes by Connor Gethins turned things decisively United's way. The first ten minutes of the second half were played predominantly in Strathspey territory and as the pressure mounted so did the population density of the visitor's box. Ideal conditions for the wily GETHINS. In the 55th minute he seized on a low cross from the right that emerged from a group of players that included Crawford. The striker was facing the way the ball had come as it neared him. He simply moved a step towards the ball and away from the nearest defender and cheekily back-heeled the ball into the net.

Two minutes later he doubled his total with a beautifully accurate drive from just inside the right corner of the box when lurking in that area looking for scraps after a McKeown marauding run into the box created the havoc it was intended to and the ball spun his way from a defenders boot, GETHINS had it in the net in a flash.

The game as a contest was over by then but with subs on and the visitors beginning to wilt, McGOWAN staked his claim for a cup final start by converting his first goal for the club into a hat trick with two quality finishes in the final four minutes. The first of these in the 87th minute. Picking up a clumsy clearance about thirty yards out and a bit to the right he simply skinned the centre backs and cracked the ball hard and low past the keeper from 15 yards out.

Sub Burnett had made ground down the right and cutting in a yard or two left, whipped the ball hard and low to the back post where McGowan simply clipped it into the net from a distance to be measured in feet rather yards.

The final scoreline may slightly flatter United but they certainly deserved a comfortable win particularly for pretty sharp second half performance. That said, their ball retention earlier on in wearing out the opposition and laid the foundations of the goal feast that followed.

Match report by Colin Keenan



Photography by Ian Rennie