League leaders Deveronvale first-footed Kynoch Park, a ground which has been none to kind to the Banffers over the past few years, and they came home with the bitter taste of defeat yet again in a tight midfield battle which was far from a classic but Maroons boss Martin Allan is unlikely be bothered as his side collected the second batch of full points over Gregg Carrol's team this season.

Cammy Keith poked home just short of the half hour mark to give the homesters the lead at the interval and although Vale shaded the second period they failed to make the break through against a packed but well-organised Keith defence and were caught out with six minutes remaining when substitute Jamie Lennox slid home from close range after good work again by Cammy Keith.

The result gives the chasing pack of Inverurie, Buckie, Forres and Fraserburgh real hope of overtaking Vale at the summit of the league table although the Banffers do have the points in the bag and have to play three of the above-mentioned sides in the next four weeks.

The Kynoch Park men were without Kris Niddrie for the labelled game of the day while the visitors had an unchanged eleven, the same set of players who saw off Huntly in their last match of 2005 but it turned out to be a case of different venue, different performance as Vale slipped up yet again on their travels.

Although Keith are to be credited for their attempts to improve the set-up at Kynock Park; the new 'continental looking' dug-outs and P A system are certainly a change for the better but the playing surface was bumpy and the pitch far too heavy for attractive football to be played thus making for a bogged down midfield battle with very little goalmouth action.

As things got underway Kenny Gilbert fired a long-range effort wide and at the other end Ian Fraser wasted a decent opportunity after Mark Chisholm's clearance landed straight at his feet 15-yrads from goal.

Derek Nicol, who looks more comfortable in his role at centre back, passed up another chance when left unmarked at a set-piece and on Vale's first flurry in the Keith penalty area Mark Smith looped a header just over Andy Shearer's cross bar after a raid down the right by Ross McWilliam.

The home side grabbed the all-important first goal when a deep free kick was headed back into his own penalty area by Mark Smith and as the ball came back in from Derek Nicol Cammy Keith swivelled to poke the ball beyond James Blanchard from six-yards.

Ian Murray was yellow carded for, in the referee's view, taking a dive at the edge of the penalty box after running onto a Mike McKenzie through ball and then Terry Kidd was inches from reaching a Kenny Gilbert centre as Vale responded.

Murray found the target with an ambitious free kick which Andy Shearer was equal to as he claimed the ball under his cross bar in the final piece of first half action.

Vale won a free kick in a dangerous position immediately after the re-start but Mike McKenzie summed up Vale's afternoon to date when he cracked the ball well over the top. Mark Smith came slightly closer minutes later when he headed Steve Dolan's corner just over the bar when perhaps Mark Chisholm might have been better placed right behind him to work Andy Shearer.

As Vale kept up the momentum Shearer tipped a placed Mark Chisholm header over before the Vale skipper saw a low effort flash across the face of the Keith sticks but fail to find the net as Shearer threw his body at the ball and was relieved to see it run past his left-hand upright. Robbie Brown's threaded pass picked out the run of Ian Murray but again the visitors failed to work Shearer when "Molby" lost his footing at the vital moment on the uneven surface.

Bryan Dlugonski popped up in the nick of time to head clear from under his own cross bar as the homesters very nearly made it two from a quick counter attack.

As Vale continued to pour bodies forward into the packed Keith half they were very nearly caught once more but only a last ditch challenge by captain marvel Mark Chisholm, who seemed to come from nowhere, kept them in the match after Cammy Keith had broke clear of the sparse Vale defence.

Terry Kidd, who had taken up a wide right role when Gregg Carrol had sent on Paul Urquhart for the out of sorts Ross McWilliam, cut-back a ball from the bye-line to Mike McKenzie but as the ball looked destined for the far corner and Andy Shearer beaten, up popped Graham Lonie to clear off the line.

A poor in-field pass by Mark Smith was cruelly punished as the home side sealed the points with a second counter.

"Rusty's" wayward pass was collected by the hard-working Cammy Keith and his solo run took him past Bryan Dlugonski and James Blanchard before squaring to the unmarked Jamie Lennox and the young substitute side footed into an empty net to complete a miserable start to the year 2006 for Gregg Carrol's men.

A decent strike in the closing minutes from Ian Murray summed up Vale's afternoon when it took a wicked defection and landed straight at the thankful Andy Shearer when on another day would have certainly landed in the net.

James Blanchard was forced to fist away a Jamie Lennox drive after the young striker had surprised Kenny Gilbert when he reached a ball, which looked to be going wide at the back stick.

Manager Gregg Carrol didn't seem to disappointed when he said, "It was just one of those days when nothing seemed to go for us although fair play to Keith they worked hard and deserved their victory".
"If "Chiz's" or "Molby's" chances had gone in then we might have sneaked a draw but to be fair we never looked liked scoring, let's just hope it's not the start of something!" joked Carrol, who seemed to be still full of festive joy as he reflected on Vale's fourth league defeat of the campaign.

Keith:
Shearer, Watt, Lonie, #Robertson, Nicol, Gibson, #Still, MacKay, Keith, Fraser (Lennox 75), B. Stephen
Subs not used: Walker, D. Stephen, Donaldson

Manager: Martin Allan

Vale:
Blanchard, Dolan, Gilbert, #Chisholm (Cpt), Dlugonski, #Brown (J Watt 77), McWilliam (Urquhart 64), Smith, McKenzie, #Murray, Kidd (G. Watt 85)
Subs not used: Noble, Phimister (GK)

Referee:  R.Wright