Buckie Thistle set up a GPH Builders Merchants Highland League Cup final against Brora Rangers with a 2-0 win against Forres Mechanics.
The Jags were not at their best but they had just enough ito defeat a dogged Can-Cans outfit on a heavy Mosset Park surface.
Buckie boss Graeme Stewart said: “We’re delighted as this is what we’ve been working for all season. We’re now in the League Cup final and we’re still challenging for the league title.
“Perhaps it wasn’t the best game in the world to watch as we weren’t at our best but we scored twice and kept a clean sheet so I’m over the moon.
“I thought Forres were good and they played to their strengths so we had to match them physically.
“Lee Fraser was a real handful and we managed to stop him scoring so I’m very happy.”
Forres made six changes to the side which slumped to a 8-0 home league defeat to title-challengers Brora Rangers on Wednesday, including the return of long-serving keeper Stuart Knight.
Buckie Thistle recalled assistant-manager, the vastly experienced Lewis MacKinnon, to central defence.
Buckie were swiftly out of the blocks and in the fifth minute that early pressure paid off when they took the lead with Sam Urquhart lobbing home keeper Knight and despite a valiant effort from Tom Brady, the bouncing ball found the roof of the net.
The Mechanics replied with a long ball into the box which MacKinnon managed to clear, at the expense of a corner kick. From the resulting set-piece Graham Fraser saw his superb header cannon back off the face of the crossbar with Kevin Main beaten.
It took a fabulous save from Knight in the Forres goal to stop a ferocious 30-yard MacKinnon free-kick from doubling Buckie’s lead in the 32nd minute.
In the 89th minute Andy MacAskill’s corner picked out Jack Murray at the back post and his downward header gave Knight no chance.
Forres manager Steven MacDonald was proud of his players’ performance.
He said: “I was pleased with the boys and I really couldn’t have asked for any more from them although on the day we just weren’t quite good enough.
“I thought we competed really well throughout and there really wasn’t that much between the two teams, althouhg it was disappointing to give away a goal so early in the game.
“We got the heavy defeat against Brora Rangers on Wednesday night out of our system, and that was pleasing, but to concede that cheap opener from a long through ball was a really hard one to come back from.”
