I’ve still no idea whether Gretna were a better team than I first thought they were or if they were simply punching well above their weight on the back of a breakaway goal that was well against the run of play but came at a crucial time (two minutes before half time) or whether Formartine made unaccustomedly heavy weather of disposing of a team that would struggle in the top half of SHFL.
I simply don’t know and what’s even more embarrassing is that I’ve no idea whether the 3-1 scoreline flatters them or us.
The only thing I’m sure of is that their keeper played out of his skin to produce a performance that not only frustrated us but went a very long way towards keeping his team in the game at a point when it looked like we were going to run riot.
The fact that we didn’t might be down to some sloppy finishing by us but we did produce a fair number of well struck shots that were bang on target but saved by keeper Parker.
The less said about their goal the better: it was the result of their only shot on target in the entire first 45 but it did wonders for their confidence and after it they looked a sight better than they did before.
A 3-1 win is on paper a clear enough victory but the scoreline doesn’t really reveal the sheer effort and persistence we had to show to get it.
That we got it speaks volumes for our ability to grind out a result against a side that knows how to sit deep and batten down the hatches. Certainly not a pretty or exciting game but one where we showed that we had the patience and persistence to grind out a result in difficult circumstances.