THIS was the first senior meeting of local rivals from the days of the Junior League slugging it out to see who could be top dog amongst the season's new recruits to the Highland League.

As such, the encounter drew a large and vocal crowd of over 400 hardy punters to North Lodge Park to see the scrap.

They certainly got their money's worth in a six goal thriller that had all the end to end action of a cup tie and one where Formartine firepower gained increasing ascendency over a dogged side that contested every ball for every one of the 90 minutes.

The game started off at high tempo that rarely dropped. Barely a minute had elapsed when Marc Young jinked his way past Hutchinson and found a bit of space on the right. He played the ball in for McKay who was heading at full throttle into the box. Without breaking stride the striker lashed it goalwards to force the first of many fine saves from keeper Fyfe.

The ball was worked straight back up the park and young Clark was onto an over the top ball from Allen. He rushed at the shot and the ball was screwed high and wide.

At this point Turriff were giving as good as they got but there was also the sense that Coull and McKay had more of an edge over their markers than Clark and Noble had over theirs.

Despite that Turriff came close in 15 minutes when Noble broke through in the centre and let fly with a rasping drive that had Gray at full stretch to turn the ball round the post for a corner. This was played to the back stick and eventually bundled away by the combined efforts of Irvine and McGuire.

It fell for Mackenzie biding his time in the hole at the edge of the box. His measured shot lacked the power to seriously trouble Gray who was well placed to gather.

'Kaiser' McKay is persistence personified and was, with Coull, working the defenders harder and harder. Leaving former Formartine defender Anderson trailing in his wake he played a one two with Young before cutting in acutely from the right to fire one that skidded off the bar and out at the opposite side for a throw in.

The breakthrough was almost inevitable and in the 25th minute and, almost predictably, it came from McKay. Linking well with Young through the inside right channel, he got himself onto the end of a beautifully judged ball from the youngster that split Massie and Anderson and left him one on one with Fyfe. He simply powered the ball well beyond the keeper and into the net.

The visitors tried to force their way back into it but in so doing left Formartine more space in the final third. With the sort of form that Coull and McKay were showing, that was a dangerous ploy that they abandoned all of two minutes later after Somers demonstrated the error of their ways.

Coull threaded the ball through from centre to right for McKay to outfox Massie and Anderson. Just as the latter committed himself the wily Kaiser moved the ball a couple of feet inside to tee up Somers who skelped it viciously into the net past a rather shellshocked looking Fyfe for number two.

The pattern was now substantially changed from the end to end stuff to one of sustained Formartine pressure interspersed with he odd but still quite dangerous looking breakaway from the visitors.

Noble looked the most dangerous of the visitors but was generally well contained by McGuire who probably had his best game since joining Formartine.

Coull was an increasing thorn in the Turra flesh and went close twice before half time – once with a snapshot that was only inches the wrong side of the right upright and again with a low rasping drive that had Fyfe at full stretch.

The first half breeze with a smirr of rain gave way by the start of the second to a wind driven torrent in the second. Playing from the village end, Turriff had the advantage of it and although it was clear that they still had the appetite to take something from the game, it was equally clear that Formartine had the guile to get the better of them despite the conditions.

A couple of minutes in and Noble was set up by a through ball from Clark and hit a rasping drive precisely to the top right corner. Gray produced a stunning save to claw the ball away from what everyone else had assumed was net bound flight.

Formartine got their third five minutes later. Clark and McKay provided an object lesson of pass and move as they played consecutive one twos through the visiting midfield and defence that found the latter near the corner of the box being jockeyed by the hapless Anderson.

A smart back heel flummoxed he big defender and set up his striking partner about 15 yards out. With the utmost precision Coull picked his spot and left the keeper rooted to the spot for number three.

Either Turriff forced Formartine back or they again elected to defend very deep but there then ensued a 15 minute period when Formartine had eight behind the ball and the visitors had territorial advantage.

Ten minutes of this was enough for Turriff to get a glimmer of hope. Shots from Clark and Morrison were off target, Gray did well to deny Noble with a dive to his feet but in the end it was Clark who established the lifeline in 62nd minute. A driven ball from Mackenzie rebounded from the midst of a goal mouth melee and from an apparently offside position reacted first to prod the ball home.

Formartine reacted by brining on Bagshaw and Vigurs for Shinnie and Maitland. While both had played a decent part in getting Formartine to their commanding position, their replacements made an immediate contribution to changing the pattern.

Bagshaw was clearly well up for this his first competitive game in six months or more and he made an instant impact. Tearing through the inside sright channel he drew the defenders forward to create space for Young with a matching run on his left. He slipped the ball over to him over the toes of the advancing defenders but the shot was a touch too studied and gave Fyfe just enough time to narrow the angle and block.

Three minutes later and Baggie was at it again. Quick thinking by Vigurs produced a perfectly weighted pass that took out Herd and gave Bagshaw a yard of space. Leaving midfielders and defenders floundering in his wake, he was off goalwards again. Splitting Anderson and Massie with impudent ease he drew the keeper, cut inside him and slotted the ball home. What a debut!

Turriff were not finished however and their consolation was a peach of a goal by Grant Noble. Picking up a lose ball that had been knocked out of the Formartine area by Vigurs he unleashed an amazing swerving drive that gave Gray not the slightest chance of reaching it as it fizzed into the top left corner.

They both battled on for the remaining ten minutes in rapidly deteriorating conditions but the contest was over, the scoreline sealed and Formartine leapfrogged over their rivals to a much more respectable mid table position.

Formartine United: Gray, Irvine, McGuire, Shinnie, Cumming, Young, Somers, Winter, Maitland, Mackay, Coull. Subs: Bagshaw, Fyfe, Vigurs, MacAskill, A. Maitland.
Turriff United: Fyfe, Bowden, Hutchinson, Anderson, Massie, Herd, Allen, Mackenzie, Clark, Noble, C. Morrison. Subs: G. Morrison, Winton, King, Hendry, Munro.