Well, no pot of Scottish Cup gold for Keith this year after the nap hand for Inverurie Locos on Saturday.
It’s not sour grapes, because really Locos were the better side, but we were up against it before the game with the absence of our key central defenders.
Michael Dunn, who was carried off at Turra last week, has been our most consistent performer this season, and Michael Ralton was also unavailable, and he has been another standout.
Gordon “Boogle” Winton had compensated for their absence by setting out a different defensive unit, but it was “tatties ower the side” after only 13 minutes, when skipper Stewart Hutcheon was ordered off for taking down Joe McCabe, conceding a penalty as a result.
Down 1-0 and down to 10 men in a Scottish Cup tie is hardly a laughing matter, and Keith fans definitely weren’t in a jovial mood.
Things got worse with another two goals before half time, one of them another spot kick. When it got to 4-0 we feared that a big drubbing was on the cards, but then Locos had a boy sent off and Craig Cormack made it four goals for the season with yet another spot kick. Penalty number four during the game came along, but our goalie Daniel Bell pulled off a great save to deny Martin Bavidge.
It was perhaps a bit harsh, but Locos nabbed another goal deep in stoppage time to rub it in.
By the way, talking of Bavidge an interested spectator sitting in the stand was his dad Mitch who won a league title with Keith back in 1980-81 – he was signed from Elgin City to replace Kevin Bremner who we sold to Colchester United. Mitch was a speedy centre forward and smashed seven goals past Huntly in an 8-3 league win in March 1982.
Another interested onlooker was Keith legend Ian “Cuptie” McKay. he was part of our great side that won the title three times in a row 1978-1981, and was part of countless Scottish Cup exploits. He still looked fit enough to play!