Clachnacuddin boss Jordan MacDonald felt it was two points dropped, but Nairn County counterpart Ronnie Sharp felt a draw was a fair result after it finished 1-1 in the derby at Station Park.
The Lilywhites dominated in the first half of this Breedon Highland League encounter and took the lead through James Anderson.
But County were much improved after the break and levelled through Glenn Main, who had been pushed up front.
Clach manager MacDonald: “I’m disappointed, I feel it’s two points dropped.
“First half we were by far the better team and we should have been more than one up, decision-making cost us.
“Nairn were by far the better team in the second half. We showed no composure on the ball, we just wanted to get rid of it.
“The goal is a free header which is poor defending, we had a warning earlier on when Martin MacKinnon made a brilliant save and we didn’t learn our lesson.
“It’s not as if Nairn cut us open but we paid the price for poor marking.
“We should have been further in front at half-time and I don’t think anyone would argue with that.
“But we weren’t and we dropped two points with the way we played second half.
“Credit to Nairn for how they played in the second half because the penned us in and stopped us playing, but we’ve got to do better on and off the ball.”
Second half improvement for Nairn
Nairn boss Sharp said: “They were the better team in the first half and we were better in the second.
“I’d probably say nobody deserved to win it. We were very poor first half, but that’s been a common thing this season. We haven’t put a full game together.
“We had to get closer, we stood off Clach far too much and there were too many gaps for them.
“The second half was a lot better and we were pushing to win it at points, but I don’t think anybody deserved to win.”
A disappointing note for Nairn was a suspected dislocated shoulder suffered by right-back Lewis Mitchell in the first half.
Sharp added: “Lewis has done his shoulder twice before and it’s popped out again.
“Long term, he might need an operation to get it pinned, I don’t know.
“It was very unlucky because that was his first start and it’s not good for this happen.”
Clach strike first
The Lilywhites took the lead in the ninth minute with the first decent attack of the game.
Robbie Thompson’s neat pass freed Lewis Nicolson on the left flank and his low cross was perfect for Anderson to finish first time from 12 yards for his 17th goal of the season.
Nairn’s first chance of the contest came after quarter of an hour but Dylan MacKenzie couldn’t control Conor Gethins’ cross when well-placed at the back post.
But Clach were inches away from doubling their lead seconds later with Martin MacKinnon’s long goal kick missed by the home defence.
Lewis Nicolson galloped in behind and lobbed goalkeeper Dylan MacLean, but the effort bounced back off the left post.
Nairn struggled to make any attacking inroads in the first period, with Clach looking the more threatening in the final third.
Thompson had a couple of efforts off target and Martin Callum headed wide.
Nairn started the second period on the front foot with Ryan Fyffe’s powerful header from a corner bringing a great save from MacKinnon.
Although Nairn were getting forward with more regularity in the second period they struggled to create much in the way of decent chances.
That was until the 69th minute when they equalised with Main planting a header into the top right corner from Tom MacLennan’s free-kick on the right.
After restoring parity County looked the more likely to find a winner.
Gethins and Main both worked MacKinnon while the Lilywhites struggled to create chances against a much more resolute Nairn defence in the second half.
With eight minutes left MacKinnon did well to hold a rasping Adam Porritt drive.
That was Nairn’s final decent chance and although Clach had four successive corners in the closing stages neither side could conjure up a winner.
