Kessock Park, NESFA League 1, 2/7/24
Me 316, Wee Man 181
St. Combs Football Club
To the Broch for Welfare ball again this current time home from work and it is a completion of the teams that play there in the SWFA. This with previous visits to Elizabethan Link Up and Faithlie United in the past. Why do St Combs not play in St Combs anymore? Anyway, I was more than chuffed at the fact we were heading up to this as with two Euros games on Wee Man kept up the “fitba is not a TV programme” type mindset as he was given the choice and he chose the real thing over the box. I love this and I hope it lasts forever.
To a dark and rainy Fraserburgh we headed and by dark I mean the cloud cover looked evil on the way up, especially around the Mormond Hill area. We were well prepared for this being a wet one. What we were not expecting was a ban from the proximity of the pitch with no spectators allowed in to preserve the 3G. Rules are rules I suppose but does it matter if the 3G off the pitch is stood on by trainers? Anyway it gives a different perspective to the story and throws up a first for us. A lock out as such. We found this out after a kick about on the near by Fraserburgh CC grounds so as we walked towards the gate for the pitch. But ever the optimist and always unperturbed by anything Wee Man stated “this will be different” as he took his spot on a rock behind a goal. His position was not to last as the heavens opened more so sending us to the car after 20 minutes of the match.
On the pitch Macduff started the better team and this was to continue for the duration. The away side had the first big chance when Ryan Christie unleashed an effort which beat Stewart in the St Combs goal. Only to see the effort hit the post. St Combs had their own big chance soon after but Ewan Milne despite being in a great position gave Golias in the Macduff goal to much of a chance to save. Macduff continued to be the better team and deservedly went ahead when a ball across the box found Kieren Neish who made no mistake which in truth if he had made a mistake he would have had to do something seriously wrong to not score. St Combs really should have levelled immediately when Will Ramsay was picked out perfectly with a free kick, the St Combs number 6 was as good as unmarked but sent his header over the bar. A huge chance squandered. But the home side were to equalise before half time and right on forty-five minutes when Mark Foley finished as dangerous a corner as you will see from Bruce when he stuck the ball past Golias from a couple of yards leaving the keeper no chance.
HT 1 v 1
Wee Man’s hopes of heading back outside were scuppered when the darkness descended for half time after what looked like a break in the weather in the later stages of the half. With the darkness came the rain and he decided to shun it. Macduff had an early chance in the first minute when Neish didn’t get a hold of an effort which he looked like he was going to bury. The game had been played in decent spirt with players picking each other up after big challenges and a lot of back patting. To be honest I find this is part of the whole league set up in general. There was one moment in the game when tempers got a bit heated with a bit of shoving and to be fair to the ref, he knocked it on the head immediately by booking the perpetrators Duthie and Christie (St Combs and Macduff respectively) and gave them a telling off in a “enough of that shite” without actually saying “enough of that shite”. This came from a Christie taking umbrage to a foul on him. Then from the resulting free kick Macduff retook the lead. The initial ball into the box was cleared but with no great distance leaving Macduff defender to strike Ernest Milne cracking an effort from twenty yards which fired through a host of bodies but his team mate Birchenall used some quick thinking and threw a foot at it getting his toe end on it which left keeper Stewart wrong footed and helpless and Macduff in the lead. This rocked St Combs who although had not really got going in the match seemed to disappear even more. Macduff controlled it and Jacob Birchenall seemed to run the show from midfield with a great performance. On top of the midfield man I had a lot of time for Christie. He was putting himself about in a lets say a rascally manner, and leaving a mark on the defenders. To which some of the St Combs men took the bait at times. I am all for a bit of shitehousery in fitba. The game lacks it in the upper echelons these days. The visitors were close to putting the game out of sight late on when a freekick struck the frame of the St Combs goal, I missed the taker as I was concentrating on stuffing my face with Vimto Jelly Babies (what an invention by the way). But I saw keeper Steward confidently leave the ball to go wide then see the less than confident and more relieved look on his face when he turned to see it rattle the bottom of the post and away to safety. This ending the game send the points west to Macduff.
The action for us was not over. As we headed beyond Strichen on the way home I struck a massive fuck off pot hole on the road which was unavoidable as there was a tractor on the other side of the road. It gave a bone shuddering dunt to the car and my first thought was this was the end of my tyre and shocker and we would be stuck nowhere near home. I took it easy to see/hear if there was damage but surprisingly no there wasn’t at that point . However once through Methlick the tyre pressure light came on as did the noise of the tyre flattening as it must have finally gave out. (15 miles later). I stopped and pumped it up. This got us another 4 miles before having to pull over and once again inflate. This allowing us to get home, complete with burst tyre, a massive divot out of the alloy and only two NESFA teams to visit. It really could have been worse and Wee Man in that unperturbed way of his, just took it in his stride put it down to bad luck and I can guarantee this will come up for years to come and will forever be related to our trip St Combs FC. Fitba together is memories and if a puncture is one then so be it.
Entrance – Free
Attendance – 19
Pie – N/A
Pint – N/A
Score Predictions – Me 2 v 2 , Wee 3 v 0
Season Score Predictions Total – Me 0 v 0 Wee Man
FITBAWBAG 