Deveronvale fought back from 2-0 down at the break to defeat Strathspey Thistle 3-2 and extend their unbeaten run to four games.
Substitute Adam Reid’s 90th minute strike won the game but it was the display of fellow second half substitute Matthew Petermann that turned the tide the way of the home side.
An Aaron Nicolson penalty after 17 minutes had Thistle ahead before Josh Race added a superb second after 38 minutes from the edge of the box to deservingly put the visitors two ahead at the break.
Vale manager Garry Wood made changes and Ben Hermiston pulled one back with a close range header after 53 minutes before Jack Mitchell levelled affairs two minutes later with another header inside the box.
Both teams had good chances to add to their tally but it was Petermann who showed great skill to bring down a wayward Mitchell cross and beat his man before slipping a great ball across goal for Reid to score the winner.
Vale manager Garry Wood said: “We scored three great goals with our substitutes making a great impact which is what we are looking for as football is a squad game now.
“It is up to those who are left out of the team to show me why they should be starting.
“Matthew (Petermann) caused Thistle all kinds of problems as did Jack Mitchell on the other side.
“We also tightened up our defence in the second period and it is a great three points for us with a fixture against Aberdeen to come in the Shire Cup on Tuesday before Buckie provide another stern test on Saturday.”
Strathspey appointed ex-Aberdeen and Caley Thistle goalkeeper Ryan Esson as their head coach on Thursday night and he was left to rue injuries to a couple of his players during the game which he felt upset his side’s rhythm.
He said: “We need to learn to defend crosses into the box better as we lost a couple of goals from them.
“Even then we still had good chances to add to the goals we scored in the first half.
“It’s difficult for myself and the players as we have only had one session together and realistically, first half especially, it was a really good performance from the lads.
“We probably did run out of a bit of legs but we won’t play on a much bigger pitch this season.
“It takes time and they are going to get used to what I am going to ask of them while we implement some of the stuff I want to introduce.
“We should have scored in the second half as we did create chances but it just didn’t fall for us.
“We have five games coming up in the next two weeks and it is tough as I can’t get the boys on the training pitch to work with them.
“I will assess the guys here at present before we decide if we need to add to the squad.”
Banks o’ Dee 1-1 Inverurie Locos
Banks o’ Dee co-manager Paul Lawson felt a share of the spoils was the right outcome after his side’s 1-1 draw against Inverurie Locos at Spain Park.
He said: “You are always disappointed to draw a game and nobody should be happy with that outcome.
“We were the better side first half, Locos in the second. A draw is therefore about right.
“Their goalkeeper Zack Ellis had a great save near the end and Daniel Hoban likewise for us. Both sides created a lot of chances.
“We’ve had a tough run of fixtures in August but our players have stood up well.”
Locos boss Dean Donaldson said: “If you’d offered me a draw before the game I’d have taken it.
“Both sides created a lot of opportunities and a draw is the right outcome.
“We’ve lost a goal to a penalty just before half time but it was unlucky for Paul Coutts.
“I had a go at our strikers at half time because if you’re going to be up challenging you have to put chances away when they come.”
Dee took the lead in 44 minutes through a penalty converted by Michael Philipson after Coutts was adjudged to have handled.
Locos levelled five minutes into the second half with Cole Anderson blasting home following a corner on the right on his 50th appearance for the club.
Banks o’ Dee, meanwhile, have confirmed the appointment of former Aberdeen goalkeeper Tomas Cerny as their new goalkeeping coach.
Brechin City 2-1 Huntly
Brechin City maintained their impressive start to the season with a narrow 2-1 victory over Huntly at Glebe Park.
Both City goals came in the opening 45 minutes with defender Lewis Martin firing home the opening goal from 10 yards after 14 minutes and Marc Scott adding a second goal three minutes before half-time.
City were less effective after the break with the game more evenly balanced with the Black and Golds battling hard to get back into the match..
They got the reward deep into stoppage time when substitute Angus Grant slotted home a consolation goal.
Brechin boss Patrick Cregg said: “I would describe the match as a game of two halves.
“The lads were excellent in the first-half and I thought we’d come out in the second half and continue that performance.
“But to be honest we probably had a big drop-off in our tempo and our willingness to be aggressive and to work hard.
“The lads deserve all the credit for the way they performed in the opening 45 minutes but I understand sometimes the players can subconsciously drop the level of performance after being so dominant in the first half without even realising it.
“However, it’s three important points and we look forward to the trip to Wick next Saturday.”
Huntly manager Colin Charlesworth said: “When you come to Brechin you’ve probably got to adapt to how you would normally play as they’re a really top team here and it’s probably one of the hardest away trips in the Highland League.
“We were perhaps a bit conservative in our play to start off with.
“We had a game plan but Brechin didn’t really allow us to put that into action in the opening 45 minutes.
“However we spoke to the players at half-time and asked them to be braver on the ball, we re-grouped and I was really proud of how the players took the game to Brechin in the second half.
I don’t think our keeper had too many saves to make.
“We got the goal we deserved come the end of it but it would have been nice to come away with a point.”
Buckie Thistle 2-2 Wick Academy
A stunning late free kick from substitute Kyle Henderson gave Wick Academy a share of the spoils against champions Buckie Thistle at Victoria Park.
Two goals in four minutes from Lyall Keir and Ryan Fyffe had turned it around for the Jags, after Ryan Campbell’s 10th minute opener for the visitors.
Buckie boss Lewis MacKinnon said: “It’s a great strike from the lad but we should never be giving away the free kick.
“The defence and goalkeeper have to defend better as a unit.
“Scoring the two goals right before half time changed the dynamic of the team talk and we went on to dominate the second half.
“While we played a lot of good football, I don’t think we tested their goalkeeper enough.
“If we got the third goal it could have been a different story.”
Keir had the first chance on seven minutes when he was played through on goal by Andrew MacAskill, but Graeme Williamson blocked his blasted effort.
Wick took an early lead when the home side failed to clear a corner to the back post, and Campbell had time to take a touch and slam the ball past Mark Ridgers.
The home side levelled four minutes before the break, Jack MacIver releasing Keir in behind again and he sent a clever lob over Williamson and in off the far post.
Right on half time, MacIver’s corner was headed against the post by Joe McCabe and Fyffe was there to prod home the rebound from four yards.
Buckie continued to look dangerous from set pieces and Williamson had to look sharp to punch away MacIver’s wicked near post corner, before Keir drew another fine save from Williamson with a deflected shot.
A minute from time, Ridgers was booked for handling well outside his area, and Henderson curled an outstanding free kick high into the top right-hand corner from 28 yards.
Wick manager Gary Manson said: “I’m delighted to get a point. Any point away to the champions you’ll take any day of the week.
“We set our stall out to frustrate and hit on the counter, and I said to the boys at half time that for 40 minutes we did it perfectly.
“We then lost two sloppy goals which took the wind out of our sails a bit, but they dusted themselves down and came back again.
“Kyle’s free kick was fit to win any game, never mind a draw. It was an unbelievable strike.”
Clachnacuddin 0-0 Fraserburgh
Clachnacuddin fear midfielder Gavin Morrison’s season is over after he suffered a knee injury in Saturday’s goalless draw with Fraserburgh.
The loss of the 34-year-old, who joined the Lilywhites in May, is a huge blow for boss Conor Gethins.
The Clach manager said: “We don’t expect to see Gav again this season unfortunately.
“He has come off the bench in the last three games and done well so to see him suffer a serious injury after just 10 minutes of the game starting is a huge blow.
“I’m gutted for him. I’ve had injuries myself in my career and I know how he’ll be feeling. It’s a massive blow for us.”
The loss of Morrison took the shine off a fine performance and hard-earned point from Gethins’ side against the Broch.
The home side hit the woodwork twice through a James Anderson header and a Troy Cooper effort while Connor Bunce also went close.
The Broch rallied in the closing stages but could not find a way past home Clach goalkeeper Daniel Rae.
Gethins said: “Over the course of the game a draw was probably the right result. Fraserburgh put us under a lot of pressure towards the end which you would expect to happen.
“They have done that for years but we stood up well to it. We looked solid defensively and keeping Scott Barbour quiet is not easy to do.
“Overall I felt we looked the more dangerous but we have got to score. That’s no goals in three games so we need to work on that.”
The Broch were equally frustrated at drawing a blank from their visit to Grant Street Park.
Assistant manager James Duthie said: “It’s very unlike the Broch to go two league games in a row without scoring.
“The manager (Mark Cowie) and I were looking back and in the nine years here we’ve been in the top three in terms of scorers in the league in that time.
“If you had told me we’d keep a clean sheet against Brechin and Clach I’d expect us to have six points from those two games instead of two which is disappointing.
“But we weren’t good enough in the final third. We were careless, chose the wrong options and didn’t do enough to win the game.
“It’s frustrating as our attacking play in the second half against Forfar in the SPFL Trust Trophy in midweek was excellent. We need to find more of a cutting edge.”
Keith 0-1 Turriff United
Turriff scratched a seven-year itch with a late winner against hosts Keith on Saturday.
The men from the Haughs hadn’t won at Kynoch Park since September 2017 but Ewan Clark’s late goal following a defensive lapse gave the visitors the points, hoisting them up into fifth spot in the league table.
Turra manager Warren Cummings said: “We were thankful for the three points as Keith dominated us in the first half in every aspect of the game, and they were probably aggrieved at not being ahead.
“We know we got away with it in the first half but as poorly as we played in the first half, I think we were the dominant side in the second half.
“We turned the tables a wee bit and had a few chances.
“Keith will be disappointed but we stuck into the game and to be honest just when it looked being a draw we got that bit of quality for the goal.”
Keith were presented with a golden opportunity to grab the lead in the 28th minute when Horace Ormsby was upended inside the penalty area.
However, Liam Duncan’s weak spot kick was comfortably saved by Lee Herbert.
Then, as half time approached, Mikey Taylor passed up a perfect chance after heading over the bar from six yards.
Turriff took hold of the game after the break, creating several openings without getting the end product.
The longer the game went on it began to look like ending up a goal-less draw.
Then, with three minutes remaining the Maroons rearguard made a hash of clearing a corner and Clark pounced to gleefully slam the ball home from eight yards.
Keith manager Craig Ewen said: “It was so disappointing to lose the game.
“It felt as though we battered them in the first half, we were well on top, creating chances but not taking them, and that comes back to bite you.
“We could easily have been 4-1 up.
“To be fair, Turra were the better team in the second half.
“As the half went on I didn’t see a goal coming at either end but it was dreadful we lost one so late on.”
Formartine United 2-3 Forres Mechanics
Forres Mechanics produced an excellent defensive display and took their chances to record a fine 3-2 victory over Formartine United at North Lodge Park.
The visitors went ahead through Matt Jamieson but late first half strikes by Jonathan Crawford and Aidan Combe gave the home side a first-half advantage.
However, a second half double by Aidan Cruickshank was enough to give the visitors all three points to the delight of manager Steven MacDonald.
He said “The boys were fantastic today they worked their socks off and fully deserved all three points.
“We wanted to come to a place like this and show we are mentally capable of producing a performance against a strong top side.
“We created a number of chances, Matty took his one well and Aidan scored two. He was a different level today, his ability is something else, he’s learning from us and the goal to win the match was brilliant and capped off an excellent performance.”
Formartine started the match brightly and went close twice in the first ten minutes with Combe seeing his curling effort come back off the woodwork and Paul Campbell was thwarted at point-blank range by Corey Patterson in the Forres goal.
At the other end Aaron Norris and Crawford made last-ditch blocks to deny Kyle MacLeod twice in the space of two minutes.
Tyler Mykyta picked out Graeme Rodger but once again Patterson produced a smart save to keep the score blank.
Mechanics’ Calum Frame should have done better when he raced onto a flick by MacLeod, but Ewen Macdonald did well to push the ball away.
He was helpless though on 29 minutes as Frame’s cross from the right was powered home by the head of Jamieson.
United responded and levelled two minutes before the break when Mykyta’s corner was forced home by Crawford. It would get better for the home side on the stroke of half time as the visitors’ defence failed to deal with a Callum Youngson free kick and Combe pounced to give Formartine the lead.
Cruickshank had the first chance after the break, but Macdonald did well to beat the ball away, Formartine responded and went close through Youngson’s 20 yarder which smacked off the post with Patterson beaten.
Just before the hour Norris pulled down Jamieson and Cruickshank made no mistake from the spot to level the score.
With four minutes remaining Forres took the lead in sensational style. MacLeod laid the ball off to Cruickshank on the right side of the box and he curled a magnificent effort high into the top corner past Macdonald.
Formartine boss Stuart Anderson said: “We should have put the game to bed early with our chances, but credit Forres as they scored some good goals and defensively we looked vulnerable.
“There’s a lot of talented players here and we need to get the confidence back in them and get them playing well again. It’s been a tough spell, and we need to stick together.”
Lossiemouth 0-2 Brora Rangers
Brora Rangers kept up their 100% league record but the Cattachs had to work hard to get the better of a well-drilled Lossiemouth.
Two late goals within as many minutes from Craig Mackenzie and Jordan MacRae secured the points but until then the visitors just couldn’t find a way past Lossie goalkeeper Stuart Knight on his debut.
Brora boss Steven Mackay said: “Lossie made it really difficult for us but we knew they would keep it compact and restrict the space so it really was a case of us being patient.
“We felt at half-time we would get an opportunity but we had to make sure we took it as Stuart Knight kept us at bay in the first half with some really good saves.
“We always felt if we persevered and were patient then hopefully we would get the breakthrough and we did that with a great goal.”
Skipper MacRae passed up a gilt-edged opportunity in the third minute when he was played through but the striker blazed high over the top from 15 yards.
Five minutes later Knight, dived to brilliantly turn a close-range MacRae effort around the post.
Knight again came to his side’s rescue when he managed to get a strong hand to Mackenzie’s angled drive despite seeing the ball late.
Brora opened the scoring in the 72nd minute when MacRae fed Mackenzie who blasted a 15-yard drive high into the roof of the net.
Two minutes later it was 2-0 when MacRae controlled the ball in the box before drilling a shot beyond Knight.
Lossiemouth manager Eddie Wolecki Black said: “I thought Stuart Knight did very well on his debut for us in goal but the performances we’ve been getting from the lads over the last few weeks have been encouraging.
“We’re hard to break down, we’re organised and disciplined and I think we’ve already proved that we can be competitive.
“You have go to be well-organised at the back with the problems that a team like Brora can give you.
“We had them watched last week so we knew what we were about to face and we worked on that in training during the week.”
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