GREGG COMES BACK TO HAUNT VALE AGAIN

DEVERONVALE 1 BUCKIE THISTLE 2 (Ht 1-2)

SCORERS: McKinnon 11, Bruce 28, McKenzie 31

Local rivals Buckie jumped a place above Vale in the league table to third following this narrow but comfortable victory against their ten-men hosts – Gary McGowan seeing red for the second time this season against the Jags.

Reigning champions Cove, whose game at Forres was postponed, were the real winners with current leaders Huntly also losing (at Fraserburgh) leaving the Aberdeen side three points adrift of Huntly with three games in hand.

Buckie came to Banff on a fine run of form and left with the points thanks to 1^st half strikes from Lewis McKinnon and Stephen Bruce.

Vale’s response was a rasping free kick courtesy of Mike McKenzie but with McGoo sent off after just 13 minutes the Banff side were left with too big a hurdle to climb against the slick visitors.

Kenny Gilbert returned to the Vale line-up for one of only three HFL matches surviving the Winter weather and on a surface which looked frost-bound in places but never-the-less was passed playable.

The visitors, just as they were in the recent Scottish Cup tie at Banff, were well up for this one and started the better of the two sides.

Zander Sutherland was as usual causing plenty of problems on the left wing and almost scored within two minutes when he struck a low effort at goal from 12-yards but sponsor’s man-of-the-match James Blanchard got down well to save.

Buckie continued to press and got their reward when Lewis McKinnon squeezed a header off Sutherland’s centre in between Blanchy finger tips and the underside of the cross bar for the opener.

Vale’s response was a swift move down the right and a low ball into the danger area which was just behind Gary McGowan but as the player got up from the incident he lashed out at David Angus under the nose of the ref and was immediately shown a red card.

Some desperate defending from Chiz and Co kept the score-line at one for a twenty minute period until some slack play and indecision in midfield allowed Stephen Bruce acres of space to run at the exposed Vale skipper and before Chiz could get a tackle in the Buckie number ten had sent a low shot between his legs and into the bottom corner for number two.

Prior to the second Darren Strong had denied Mike McKenzie with a fine stop low to his right but the stand-in keeper could do very little about the next effort on goal from the Vale striker.

Mark Smith won a free kick 25-yards out and up stepped McKENZIE to sent a screamer into the top corner with only the netting preventing the ball landing on the Duff House Royal Golf Course.

Stephen Bruce might have done better with a close-range header which lacked any power to beat Blanchard after strike partner Martin Charlesworth had broke clear of Steve Dolan and set-up the opportunity. HT

Derek Milne compounded Vale’s miserable afternoon when he limped off shortly after the re-start although it was good to see Graeme Watt return to the action after his recent injury problems.

A mix-up between Kenny Gilbert and Mark Chisholm allowed David MacRae to tee-up the arriving Jamie Shewan but the attacking full-back was just a whisker away from reaching the midfielder’s threaded pass.

Donnie Munro cracked one well over the top and the extra man started to take its toll on the homeside although Mike McKenzie did look as though he had got the better of the Jag’s defence when he dropped his shoulder and made some room for a strike at goal but a quick recovery from Lewis McKinnon thwarted this rare sight of goal for the Banff side.

James Blanchard was well placed to prevent Scott Fraser netting at the wrong end after a bit of a mix-up in the Vale penalty box before the big defender was forced out of the match with an injury.

Vale’s only chance of an equaliser looked like it may come from a set-piece and the opportunity did arrive with a quarter of an hour to go but the defensive wall did their job and got the slightest of nicks on Mike McKenzie’s fierce strike to sent it over the top for a fruitless flag-kick.

Zander Sutherland had a chance to put the icing on the Christmas Cake with five minutes remaining but Blanchy was equal to the former Caley winger’s effort and although there were about five minutes of injury time played the homesters never looked like breaking down the well-marshalled Thistle defence.

Line Ups:

Buckie – Strong, Shewan, C Angus, #MacRae, D Angus, McKinnon, #Munro, #Stewart, Charlesworth (Brown 64), Bruce, #Sutherland

Subs Not Used – MacMillan, Duncan, McDonald, Main (gk)

Manager – Gregg Carrol

Deveronvale – Blanchard, #Milne (Watt 49), Dolan, #Chisholm, #Fraser (Rodger 78), ##McGowan, #Brown, Duncanson (Gauld 88), McKenzie, #Smith

Subs Not Used: Cowie, McKenzie (gk)

Co Managers – Stuart Glennie & Scott Anderson

Officials:

Ref – A Mather

Asst Referees – K Milne, M Milne

Vale Stats:

Shots On Target: 3

Shots Off Target: 0

Blocked Efforts: 1

Woodwork: 0

Headers On Target: 1

Headers Off Target: 0

Corners Won: 7

Offside: 1

Approx Attendance: 850

Last Season: 0-2

Ground Conditions: Frosty

Overhead Conditions: Calm but Cold

Temperature at Kick Off: 3°C