Manager Steve Porter described Lossiemouth’s victory against Strathspey Thistle as a weight being lifted from their shoulders.
The Coasters beat the Grantown Jags 2-0 at Grant Park to earn their first win since September 21 and end a run of 11 straight defeats in all competitions.
It was also Porter’s first victory as boss, in his sixth game in charge, following his appointment on November 6.
Lossie have moved up to 15th the Breedon Highland League table and are four points ahead of bottom side Strathspey, who have two games in hand on the Moray club.
Porter said: “We knew it was a tough fixture, a bottom of the table clash, we desperately needed three points and we got them.
“We asked the boys to work really hard, they did that and the most pleasing thing was the clean sheet, I’m delighted.
“This makes a huge difference to me, I hadn’t won a game since coming in and I was desperate to win.
“It was an important game for us. The boys have worked really hard over the last few weeks when we haven’t had a game and this is a bit of a reward for their hard work.
“It’s a bit of a weight lifted from our shoulders, there’s been pressure on us to perform.
“The boys were brilliant and now we’ve got a win hopefully we can get a bit of momentum now and it can be the start of something.
“We want to be positive and try to look further up the table.”
Match action
In a tense first half where defences were firmly on top there was one significant moment of goalmouth action which resulted in Lossie taking the lead on 10 minutes.
Jared Kennedy’s in-swinging corner from the right was met by a bullet header from Lewis McAndrew and the ball nestled in the bottom left corner of the net.
Six minutes into the second half the Coasters doubled their lead. Ryan Matheson’s effort at the front post from Ross Morrison’s right-wing cross was parried by goalkeeper Euan Storrier, but Shaun Cameron pounced to finish on the rebound from 10 yards.
Two minutes later Connor Macaulay found the net for the Coasters, but he was flagged offside.
At the other end Strathspey threatened when Josh Race shot into the side-netting at the back post after Liam Shewan had crossed from the left.
In the 58th minute Morrison released Cameron through on goal, but with the chance to finish the contest his tame effort was saved by Storrier.
Strathspey had plenty of territory and pressure in the last half hour, but were kept at bay by a diligent and dogged Lossie backline.
Thistle did threaten to get on the scoresheet. In the 70th minute Filip Franczak weaved in off the left and shot against the left post from 20 yards.
Moments later Stephen Rennie’s ball into the box was miscued by home captain James Leslie as he tried clear, but goalkeeper Stuart Knight made a good save.
Two minutes from time Rennie’s fine strike from 25 yards struck the outside of the right post.
Jags need to stay positive
Strathspey manager Ryan Esson said: “The first half was poor, we didn’t create anything, I didn’t think Lossiemouth created much either.
“We’ve conceded another goal from a set piece which is disappointing.
“In the second half I can’t believe we didn’t score, in the final third we’ve missed quite a lot of chances in the last four or five games.
“I can see improvements in the team, but it’s disappointing because you feel the team is progressing but it’s not shown in results.
“You’re judged on is results and we need to start seeing them.
“We need to start climbing the table, we all know that and we’re all trying to do it.
“It’s about staying positive. Ultimately it’s only three points, we know how important the three points were.
“But it is still only three points and we’ve got games left where we feel we can do well.”
Inverurie Locos 2-3 Brora Rangers
Brora Rangers grabbed the winning goal three minutes into injury time to move top of the Breedon Highland League.
The dramatic 3-2 win at Inverurie Locos moves the Cattachs one point clear of Brechin City having played one game more.
Brora boss Steven Mackay said: “It is a huge win for us.
“The opportunity was there for us to go top of the table, we’ve not been there since the early weeks of the season.
“It’s a good position to be in and where we want to be.
“The boys showed great resilience and character. It was similar to what we had to show at Formartine before Christmas. We needed to find that grittiness and way to win the game.
“I don’t think many people would have suspected Wallace Duffy would produce the late finish, it was a great piece of skill to win the game.
“Gary Pullen and Craig Mackenzie were key players in the midfield for us, winning the second balls on a tough pitch.
“You can’t come here and win without working hard. I’m happy with the performance and obviously the result.”
Inverurie went in front in 37 minutes when a Milosz Ochmanski cross was deflected into his own net by Michael Finnis
Three minutes later a great downward header by Connor Bunce from a Tony Dingwall free kick ensured the score was level at the break.
Brora took the lead in 57 minutes when a free kick by Mackenzie went through a sea of bodies and was knocked into the net by defender Mark Nicolson at the back post
The drama was far from over. In 85 minutes Calum Dingwall was upended in the box with Paul Coutts sending Cammy Mackay the wrong way from the penalty spot.
But the winner was to be a stunner for Locos with ex-Caley Thistle player Duffy netting the winner from the edge of the box.
Locos boss Dean Donaldson said: “I’m disappointed about the manner the goals were lost. We have to defend set pieces better and it cost us the game.
“When we got back level I felt we could hold on for the draw or go on to win. The substitutes gave us energy when they came on.
“I feel we’re playing within ourselves. We’ve matched the league leaders but need to see more in the final minutes to see out the game.”
Locos, meanwhile, have signed centre-half Max Foster, 25, from Turriff United on a deal until 2027.
Keith 1-3 Formartine United
This was both Formartine and Keith’s first game of 2025 with the visitors coming out on top at a sunny but chilly Kynoch Park.
The match was preceded by a minute’s applause in respect of the late Denis Law, the legendary Aberdonian who was a Manchester United and Scotland all-time great, and sadly passed away on Friday.
Formartine manager Stuart Anderson was happy with the win against the Maroons.
He said: “Our last game was on December 21 so it’s been a long wait. You’re always a bit wary of how the boys will be, but in the first half we were good.
“The only negative was the sloppy goal we gave away, though we created a lot of chances and scored a couple of goals.
“We maybe didn’t have the same control in the second half, but still carried a threat.
“Keith is never an easy place to come to, so it was a good away performance.”
There was only nine minutes gone when Formartine took the lead following a long throw in which wasn’t cleared, and Tyler Mykyta rifled home from 12 yards.
A minute later the same player struck the foot of the post with a curling 20-yard free kick.
Then, on the half hour, the dangerman forced Keith goalkeeper Craig Reid into a diving save to keep out another free kick.
However, five minutes later it was all square when the visiting defence failed to organise, and Jordan Lynch’s edge of the box free kick flew into the far corner of the net.
Four minutes before half-time the visitors regained the lead when Robert Ward capitalised on slack defensive play to make no mistake from 15 yards.
Although Keith came more into the game in the second half, the only further scoring came in the 76th minute when Julian Wade was adjudged to have been fouled inside the penalty area, and he made no mistake with the resultant award.
Keith manager Craig Ewen said: “We’ve only had two games in six to seven weeks, and have an extensive injury list just now, but in terms of effort the guys worked their socks off.
“There just wasn’t enough quality today. Formartine were clearly the better team in the first half, though we did play better in the second half.”
Rothes 1-6 Huntly
Huntly ran out deserved winners against a Rothes side who sit second bottom of the Breedon Highland League.
The Strathbogie men dominated proceedings and had it not been for the brilliance of Sean McCarthy in the home goal, the score would have been in double figures.
Huntly manager Colin Charlesworth said: “Rothes are in a transitional period, there’s no getting away from that, they’ve brought a new manager in and with the recent weather he’s been unable to get his ideas across.
“We are having a good season even though today we’d played fewer games than anyone else in the league before today.
“But we’re up there fighting and if we can win the games in hand I think we have a real good chance of breaking into the top six, even the top four.”
Before the game there was an enthusiastic minute’s applause for the late, great Denis Law, whose aunt and uncle once lived in Rothes.
The visitors opened the scoring in the seventh minute when McCarthy did well to parry the first drive but Kai Watson was on hand to drill the ball into the net from 10 yards.
It was 2-0 in the 25th minute when Rothes failed to clear a corner kick and Sam Robertson had the simplest of tasks to net from four yards.
On the half hour it took a brilliant save from McCarthy to stop Brodie Allan’s close-range header from making it 3-0.
Five minutes from the break it was three when Ross Still bulleted an angled drive into the roof of the net and two minutes after the restart Angus Grant ran through the middle unchallenged to add number four.
On the hour Rothes almost pulled one back on the hour but Ross Logan’s thunderous 22-yard drive cannoned back off the face of the crossbar.
However striker Logan was no to be denied and two minutes later he rose to head home from six yards.
Huntly scored again in the 79th minute when James Connelly rose unchallenged at a corner to send a downward header into the bottom corner of the net and three minutes later Grant added number six from the penalty spot.
Rothes boss Ronnie Sharp said: “We were poor all over the park. We’re not working hard enough and at the moment we’re not technically good enough either.
“Our performance, right from the very first minute in the first half was flat, and had it not been for a brilliant performance from our goalkeeper, Sean McCarthy, it would have been a lot more.”
Banks o’ Dee 4-0 Wick Academy
A dominant first half display from Banks o’ Dee earned them all three points against Wick Academy at Spain Park.
Dee co-manager Josh Winton said: “I thought over the piece we deserved to win and keeping a clean sheet was a real positive for us.
“We did give away a couple of opportunities though, which were of our own making.
“We were pretty rusty across the piece after the three-week lay-off, so the pleasing thing was to get the win.
“It was great to see young Zach Stephen from our junior team make his debut, I thought he did well.”
Dee went in front after only four minutes, Kane Winton with the first time cross from the left and Mark Gilmour headed home at the far post via a deflection.
Euan Kennedy missed a great chance to equalise shortly after, screwing his effort wide of the right post when clean through on goal.
An Owen Harrold mistake allowed Liam Duell to race clear on 21 minutes, and he was brought down in the area by Lewis Gallacher. Duell sent the Wick keeper the wrong way from the spot to make it two.
Max Alexander made it three on the half hour mark with a superb turn inside his man and a cool finish into the far corner from the left of the penalty area.
The visitors improved after the break and Kennedy brought a save from Hoban with a shot from 20 yards.
Dee substitute Andy Hunter hit the bar with a free header late on, with Gallacher making a great save from the rebound from fellow sub Lachie MacLeod.
Hoban then made a superb stop from Kennedy after he got on the end of Kyle Henderson’s ball across goal.
Lachie MacLeod finished the game with a flourish in injury time, flicking the ball over his marker and crashing a volley high into the net from 12 yards.
Wick boss Gary Manson said: “I warned the boys before the game not to give away cheap corners or cross balls, as we lost a goal from a corner after about 90 seconds in the home fixture.
“In fairness they could have folded after losing an early goal, but they stuck at it and had a couple of chances first half.
“They (Dee) deserved their lead at half time, but I was pleased with our response second half and we should have scored at least a couple of goals.”
Nairn 1-5 Forres Mechanics
Forres Mechanics hit five goals during a one-sided second half during their derby encounter against Nairn County to ensure the journey back along the A96 was an enjoyable one.
An instantly forgettable first half saw few chances created by either side but within four minutes of the second half Kyle Macleod opened the scoring from an an inswinging corner.
Forres added a second three minutes later as Shaun Sutherland found the target with a fine header before they made it three in the 57th minute when Calum Frame fired beyond Lewis Munro from the edge of the box.
The visitors made it four goals in 13 minutes when Frame directed a fine angled header beyond Munro following a Jack Grant corner.
Nairn pulled one back after 79 minutes when Fraser Dingwall’s effort was deflected home from close range but Forres went straight up the park to add another within 65 seconds as Shaun Morrison set up Frame to complete a fine hat trick.
Forres manager Steven MacDonald said: “First and foremost, it was really pleasing to get the win and get going again after the enforced weather break. We will take confidence from the goals we scored and created.
“It was also good that we kept going even when we were four ahead. After not working our play down the left wing in the first half we spoke about it at half time and during the second half we definitely concentrated more on that area and got a lot a joy.
“It was pleasing for Calum Frame to get a hat trick. That is him in double figures now as he is becoming more consistent and is a really bright talent.”
Nairn manager Ross Tokely said: “It was a poor second half performance but to be honest I wasn’t happy with what we did in the first half either..
“It’s been the story of our season as we lose one or two goals and then just fall apart. I have said some strong words in the dressing room so the players can deal with that.
“I’ll take the responsibility about how we play and how we shape up but once the players step over that line it’s up to them and looking at that it was one of the worst halves of football I have been involved in.
“We let everyone down massively on the day and should not be losing games like that against Forres or against whoever we play.”
Clachnacuddin 7-0 Deveronvale
Conor Gethins believes Clachnacuddin have shown their intent for the rest of the season after thrashing Deveronvale 7-0 at Grant Street Park.
It was the third time this season the Lilywhites – who are fourth in the Breedon Highland League – have scored seven goals.
Manager Gethins said: “It was pretty comfortable, I think Deveronvale were maybe caught out having not played for four weeks and we looked really sharp and strong.
“We took off Troy Cooper, Andrew Macrae, James Anderson and Craig Lawrie and we were able to put on Lewis Mackenzie, Allan MacPhee, Jack Davison and Scott Davidson which shows how strong we are.
“Harry Nicolson and Josh Meekings were on the bench as well. We’ve started the year with a 7-0 victory which shows our intent, we’re really looking to kick on.
“This was maybe the most convincing we’ve looked, we looked like we had more in the tank.”
Andrew Macrae got his first goal for Clach with a deft finish to get the ball rolling and James Anderson also got on the scoresheet in the first period.
After the interval Troy Cooper made it 3-0 after good set-up work from Macrae, then Rorie Macleod chipped goalkeeper Ethan Hopkinson for number four.
Sub Scott Davidson got Clach’s fifth goal, converting from the penalty spot after Tobias Davies-Browne had tripped sub Lewis Mackenzie.
As time ticked down Jack Davison got in on the act before Davidson got his second to make it a magnificent seven.
Deveronvale boss Garry Wood said: “It was a really disappointing result, we haven’t had too many this season.
“We’ve got to look at the season as a whole and it’s been very positive, but on this occasion we didn’t meet the standards that we’ve set.
“It was extremely disappointing, but we do have to take into consideration that we hadn’t played since December 21 which didn’t help.
“But we expect the guys to give us the correct application and they didn’t. However, take nothing away from Clach, they were very good.”
Conversation