Halkirk United manager Ewan McElroy believes his side will come up against the North Caledonian League’s strongest side when they face Invergordon this weekend.
Last season’s champions Invergordon are 14 points adrift of leaders Loch Ness at present, but they still have four games in hand which could reduce that gap to two points if they can capitalise on them.
Although Gary Campbell’s men are the chasing pack at present, McElroy feels their run of seven straight victories shows they are still firmly in the mix.
McElroy said: “We are under no illusions about the difficulty of the task at hand.
“For me, Invergordon are probably the strongest squad in the league and recent form kind of confirms that.
“They are gunning for the league, where we maybe don’t have quite as much to play for, but we will still hope to travel down reasonably strong and give them a decent game.
“They are usually relatively tight games against Invergordon, which is credit to our squad. Over the last couple of years they have shown they are probably just in front.
“Loch Ness have done fantastically well this year and it looks like a two-horse race between those two – with a wee bundle of us below.”
United hoping to finish strongly
Halkirk occupy seventh position in the table at present, among a cluster of teams occupying mid-table positions.
With five games remaining, McElroy is determined to finish the campaign with a flourish.
He added: “It’s a hugely competitive league this year, which you can see just from looking at the league table.
“I think it’s just about the toughest the league has been.
“We have got to take that into consideration. Unfortunately, we were severely hampered with injuries at the start of the season, and I think that probably cost us.
“It has been a bit of an up and down season. There have been plenty positives for sure, but also plenty to work on in the future.
“We will try to finish with as many points as possible. Some teams, including ourselves, might use it to blood in a few younger boys for seasons to come.
“It’s an obvious step up from the summer league, which is what the majority of boys are probably playing at their own age.
“Hopefully over the next few games we will be able to pop in one or two of the younger boys and see how they get on.
“We will certainly do our best to pick up as many points as possible between now and the end.”
Loch Ness aiming to maintain 14-point advantage
Leaders Loch Ness will aim to maintain the gap at the top, when they make the trip to bottom side Bonar Bridge.
FULL-TIME SCORES – NORTH CALEDONIAN LEAGUE
Loch Ness 3 v Clach 'A' 1 (2.00)
Alness Utd 2 v Orkney 5
Bonar Bridge 0 v St.Duthus 5
Fort William 3 v Halkirk Utd 1
Nairn 'A 0 v Golspie 2
Thurso 1 v Invergordon 5#NCFA #Northcaley pic.twitter.com/2HDGgy2Zpy— North Caledonian FA (@NorthCaleyFA) February 25, 2023
Golspie Sutherland are looking to continue their improved recent form when they host third-placed St Duthus.
Inverness Athletic will aim to get back on track when they make the trip to Thurso, while Fort William travel to Clachnacuddin reserves.
Elsewhere, Orkney host Nairn County reserves, whose boss Stuart Finnie has confirmed he will step down from his role at the end of the season.
Reserves Team Head Coach, Stuart Finnie will leave his post at the end of season. Full story 👇https://t.co/KO5T1yW66c pic.twitter.com/k9LL9JROl1
— Nairn County FC (@NairnCounty) March 1, 2023
Finnie will be aiming to sign off on a high following seven seasons in the role, with County in North Caledonian Cup semi-final action at home to Invergordon later this month.
Conversation