Second half sensations
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An impressive display on Thursday night gave the Mechanics fans and dressing room a real lift as the Can Cans “won the second half” against one of the First Division’s title favourites, Ross County.
Despite having been given the runaround in the first 45, the Mechanics came out for the second half looking fresh and went on to be more than a match for Derek Adams’ side with Scott Moore and Garry Tweedie scoring a couple of memorable goals.
Assistant manager Charlie Brown was in charge along with Kenny Hendry in the absence of Charlie Rowley, who was on holiday, and after the game the legendary striker was in upbeat mood.
“In the first half, Ross County had a lot of the possession, but the second half was a lot better for our boys, who got a lot more of the ball and started to enjoy it, and that is what it is all about.”
Brown pointed to the effect of the early second half strike by Scott Moore on the players’ mentality, adding: “I think in the second half they started to believe in themselves. We told them at half-time to go out in the second half and not to be overawed by them.
“They started to put themselves about a lot more and we frustrated Ross County a bit, and when we got on the ball, we started passing it, which is important at any level, but particularly against good sides. We got the two great goals from Scott Moore and Garry Tweedie and that gave us confidence.”
This game was the last time that the Mechanics will face full-time opposition, with a handful of games against junior opposition being pencilled in alongside a friendly against Elgin City next Tuesday (July 19).
“The boys have worked really hard, the games have obviously been tough ones against Inverness Caley Thistle and then Ross County. They are full-time teams so we knew it was always going to be difficult but the boys have put in a shift in training and in the games so far and they’ve enjoyed the rewards of that tonight. I am sure they are looking forward to the season already,” said Brown.
Having suffered at the hands of Inverness Caley Thistle last week, Forres Mechanics must have feared the worst during the opening half of their game against a Ross County side that has spent the summer snapping up players in pursuit of SPL football.
Derek Adams’ team was quick off the mark and once again the goals came in a quickfire burst. The visitors were in front with nine minutes on the clock with Mark Corcoran driving to the byeline before picking out Steven Craig with a pull back which was converted with the aid of a deflection.
reward
Minutes later, Steven Craig turned creator with a flighted cross that was bulleted past Stuart Knight by Curtis Byrne. Ross County now had their tails up and were dominating possession.
The third goal arrived in the 18th minute and it was a well struck finish from midfielder Paul Lawson which left Stuart Knight going into the back of his net to retrieve the 20 yard effort.
The Can Cans solidified for the remainder of the half with the players working hard to minimise the space for Ross County to break into as the slick movement of the First Division side was slowly stifled.
They did grab one further goal before the break, although this one didn’t have the trademark passing build up. It came from a launched through-ball by Stuart Kettlewell which found Curtis Byrne scampering in behind the back line and he lifted it over the advancing goalkeeper to make it 4-0 at the break.
A half-time pep talk did the trick as Forres came out after the break with a spring in their step and the home fans were treated to an impressive performance.
It was kicked off by a moment of magic from Scott Moore, the diminutive midfielder chesting a ball down into his path before unleashing an unstoppable left footed shot into the bottom right hand corner of the net. It was not only the Mechanics first goal of pre-season but it was also the first scored by any of the Highland League clubs in the games played up until that point.
Although it was tough to break down the Ross County defence there was little doubt that the Can Cans had broken their rhythm and began to string together some good passing moves of their own.
The reward was to come in the shape of a second goal, even better than the first. Sub Garry Tweedie collected the ball outside the box and let fly with a stunning strike which was enhanced by the effect of it crashing down off the underside of the bar and bouncing high into the net. It was the perfect ending to a positive second half display.
Forres Mechanics: Stuart Knight, Graeme Grant, Simon Allan(G Tweedie 56), Nathan Sharp, Graeme Fraser, Ross MacPherson, Matthew Davidson, Gordon McNab, Lee Fraser, Kevin Duguid, Scott Moore. Subs: Ryan Green, Kevin Shortreed, Matthew Fraser, Craig Daley.
Scorers: Scott Moore(48), Garry Tweedie(78).
Ross County: Joseph Malin, Gary Miller, Archie McPhee, Stuart Kettlewell, Jonathan Flynn, Paul Lawson, Richard Brittain, Russell Duncan, Stephen Craig, Curtis Byrne, Mark Corcoran. Subs: Grant Munro, Michael Gardyne, Marc Fitzpatrick, Colin McMenamin, Rocco Quinn, Michael Fraser, Sam Morrow.
Scorers: Stephen Craig(9), Curtis Byrne(11, 43), Paul Lawson(18).
Ref: Craig Sim.
