Scare for The Cans, but it was all Whyte

Having been over the moon last week after watching his team destroy Lossiemouth manager Charlie Rowley was in a pragmatic mood when he reflected on a second half turnaround which prevented a shock result at Mosset Park.

Putting things as simply as possible Rowley focused on the final result, “The be all and end all is three points and all in all I am delighted with the win. We played particularly well last week and got three points. We didn’t hit the same standard this week but we still got the same three points.”

With the Can Cans now moving on to the 50 point mark from 20 games played the league table still makes for good reading and the manager was not in the mood to be overcritical of his players.

“As the scoreline suggests it was difficult for us. You have to credit them for their efforts and it was nervy at times, they had the bonus of an early goal which gave them a big lift. The conditions were horrible and it was a credit to the referee that he let the game go ahead and credit to Strathspey because I am sure they will give a lot of teams a lot of problems if they continue with the same level of effort they showed on Saturday.”

He continued, “I do feel that underfoot and overhead conditions made it a lot closer in terms of quality, you could say they were a big leveler, but even then I wasn’t really pleased with the way we performed in the first half.

“I think a lot of the problems were caused by ourselves but in the second half it was one way traffic. We played the entire 45 minutes in their half and if it wasn’t for some good goalkeeping and some less than quality finishing from ourselves then the scoreline could have been a bitty better.”

One player who stood out on a difficult afternoon was Neil Whyte and once again the manager marveled at his longevity as a player, “He continues to play like a 19 year old. I thought his performance yesterday was magnificent, primarily off the ball with his work rate and attitude. His desire to get his team back into the game was unquestionable.

“I am still amazed at how that man can continue to be mobile and have as much energy as his age. Don’t forget he has two young girls, he works shifts at work and comes to training when he can but he still puts in performances that belie the fact that he is 37 years old.”

Coming into this game the statistics would have had the bookmakers offering long odds on anything other than a comfortable Forres victory. Strathspey Thistle have never won away from home in the SHFL while it has been well over two years since anyone other than Keith have left Mosset Park with three points.

On paper it was a foregone conclusion but as it happens the game was played on a surface somewhere between grass and mud. With the conditions overhead not providing any respite this was not going to be an easy afternoon for the players and it got a lot harder after six minutes.

Fraser Tulloch floated a free kick into the penalty area where Mattuesz Bobrowski rose to head the ball across goal and Joe Hardie arrived on cue to head the ball past Stuart Knight to give Strathspey Thistle a shock lead.

The Grantown Jags now had something to hold on to and their determination to constantly press the player in possession really inhibited the Mechanics who struggled to move the ball well on a sticky surface.

Halfway through the first half Neil Whyte let fly from just outside the box but his effort was well saved by Willie Ridgers. A jinking run from Kevin Duguid then culminated in a cut back for Kyle Scott but he saw his effort deflected wide.

Neil Whyte fired just wide before a free kick from Simon Allan picked out Graham Fraser but his effort rattled off the outside of the post and went out for a goal kick. Strathspey had made it to the break with their lead intact.

At half time Forres clearly steeled themselves for the fight to secure all three points and they immediately pressed the visitors back from the start of the second half. Willie Ridgers made a fine fingertip save to prevent Nathan Sharp from adding to his growing tally for the season from a Simon Allan corner but there was nothing the keeper could do about the leveler which arrived eleven minutes after the turnaround.

A direct drive into the box from Kevin Duguid was to the be the catalyst for the goal as, although his run was halted by the rugby-esque line of defenders the ball spun back into the path of Garry Tweedie who drilled an unstoppable shot into the bottom right hand corner of the net from the edge of the box. It was a trademark first time finish from the former Morton man.

The pressure on the Strathspey defence intensified but they manfully held firm. Sub Matty Davidson made an instant impact and broke through the Strath defence only to see his parting effort saved by Ridgers.

The keeper was at it again to spectacularly deny Garry Tweedie a second after the striker rose to head a Graham Fraser cross towards the corner of the net. Graeme Grant was also venturing forward to try and find the breakthrough and when his shot was blocked Neil Whyte cracked a follow up effort off the top of the crossbar.

Was this a sign it wasn’t going to be Forres’ day? No, it was just a forewarning that the visitors defences were about to crack and a minute later Whyte got his reward for an inspiring display.

Another lung bursting run into the box was rewarded by a ball from Matty Davidson which found Neil Whyte 12 yards out and he zipped the ball past Willie Ridgers to spark an eruption of relief and joy from the packed stand. It was a reflection of the Mechanics resolve that they continued to push for a third and never allowed their opponents “one last chance” to salvage a point.

With another three points banked manager Charlie Rowley is now focusing on another potentially sticky fixture with his finger crossed that the weather improves. “We are looking to get a momentum up from a run of games but I have my doubts about the Rothes game going on at this stage. It will be six weeks since they have last played but it will be no mean task to get three points there. They always make it difficult for us, it is a derby in a sense and both sets of players know each other well and the strengths and weaknesses so we are going to have to be in good form to overcome a stuffy Rothes side.

Forres Mechanics: S Knight, G Fraser, S Allan, G Grant, N Sharp, R Macpherson (G McNab 88), N Whyte, K Duguid, G Tweedie (W Barron 75), K Scott, S Moore (M Davidson 65) Subs: J Main, C Brown

Scorers: G Tweedie (56), N Whyte (77)

Booked: - Sent Off: -

Strathspey Thistle: W Ridgers, N Mochan (D Horsburgh 85), F Tulloch, S McDonald, F Munro, D Ross, J Hardie, R Kennedy (J Sutherland 75), C Rothney (S Reinsons 63), M Bobrowski, D Ritchie Subs: P McArthur, A Klarkins

Scorers: J Hardie (6)

Booked: D Ross (67) Sent Off: -

Ref: M McNab

Gazette Gold Star: When the chips are down then those with the greatest will to win often step forward to force their team forward and Neil Whyte was full of drive and determination. The fact that he scored the winner himself merely sealed the star for the evergreen midfielder.