July 15th 2024
THE home side saved the best of the goals until last with Adam Porritt hooking home a sensational clincher as the hosts claimed all three points with an impressive 3-0 victory, to sign off their Station Park season in style. The visitors were first to settle and on five minutes, they had a man over on an attack down the right and David Booth connected with Angus Grant’s cutback from the right but the ball deflected off Glenn Main at the near post for a corner. From the resulting delivery, Ross Anderson saw a header pushed away by Daniel Hoban. Cohen Ramsay called Turriff goalkeeper Greg Sim into action on 13 minutes with a powerful low effort from just outside the box that the United number one dived to his left to smother before grabbing the ball at the second attempt, just pipping Dylan Mackenzie to the follow up. Nairn took the lead 38 minutes in after easing themselves more and more into the contest. Jordan MacRae pinged a fizzing low effort across goal from just inside the right-edge of the box that was parried by Sim out to Ramsay. His first-time follow-up with his left foot was blocked on the goal line but Max Ewan was sniffing about to turn the loose ball home from six yards. Ewan almost doubled his tally five minutes later when he knocked MacRae’s inviting, out-swinging cross from the right back across goal but with Sim rooted to the spot, the ball bounced back off the far post. Turriff started the second half well as they had done the first and on 53 minutes, Adam Cross fed David Ross but his angled low shot across goal from 15 yards to the left of goal was tipped wide by a superb diving save from Hoban. Slack play from the hosts almost presented the visitors an equaliser when David Booth nicked possession 35 yards from goal and drove forward but his ball across the face found no takers. Then, on 66 minutes, Booth found himself racing on to a header in behind the County backline but he could only stab the ball across goal and past the far post. The woodwork again prevented Nairn from going two goals in front on 67 minutes. MacRae raced forward off Jack Maclean’s throw-in on the right but his driven effort across goal smacked off the inside of the far post. Turriff upped the pressure but Nairn looked dangerous on the counter and on 72 minutes, Sim had to stand up well to make a solid block at his near post off MacRae’s driven effort after the County attacker tried his luck from the angle on the right after being fed by Ryan MacDonald. But County found a second goal on 79 minutes. Adam Porritt cut in from the left touchline 35 yards up from the corner flag before clipping a perfectly-flighted ball towards the far post. Dylan Mackenzie rose to meet it and the teenage striker looped a header into the net via the underside of the crossbar. Nairn made sure of the points in the final minute in sensational style. Adam Porritt stood over a free kick just inside the left touchline 35 yards out and shaped up to bend it to the far post with his right foot. But instead of delivering the ball to a team mate, he hooked his delivery in at the near post, catching out goalkeeper Sim who could not scramble across his line quickly enough to keep the audacious effort out. Nairn County – Hoban, J. Maclean, K. McKenzie, Callum Maclean, Glenn Main, Porritt, MacDonald, Ramsay, D. Mackenzie (Highet 83), MacRae, Ewan. Subs unused: Fernandino-Soto, Maclennan, Ednie, Cameron Maclean, McConaghy, D. Maclean (gk). Turriff United – Sim, Chalmers, Allan (Cairns 58 (y 76)), Anderson, Bowden (yellow 62), Strachan, Cross, Booth, Ross, Grant (Nowosielski 85), Ironside (Miller 58). Subs unused: Reid, Walker, Conway, Sherman (gk). Referee – Alan Proctor. Graeme Macleod
