Date:- 16/05/2008
Time:- 14:26:25
Time:- 14:26:25
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 HFC Leagues, Results & Reports - Season 2001
League Match - 08/08/01 Halkirk finished the season as they started, losing by two goals at the 'dammies' to a Thurso team. A quick goal in the first half seemed to knock Halkirk for six and Thurso Pentland controlled the play throughout the match. Halkirk seemed to have gone a little continental, for the last game of the season, by signing a new coloured guy for defence but he seemed to lack a little bit of speed. Looked very similar to 'e Lilt Man' from the advert. League Match - 01/08/01 Sorry, I was away on holiday when this game was being played. My informant tells me that 'Steam Jets' hit the bar twice and struck the post, followed by Gavin 'Kenny' Evetts striking a long range shot parried onto the bar, by the keeper. Sounds familiar and pretty truthful............yeah League Match - 26/07/01 Halkirk more or less played one of their common games for this season against Wick Thistle. They managed to apply some pressure throughout the match and produce good goal clinching chances but could not score. Even when they were awarded a penalty in the second half, it was not to be. Young Stevie 'Blocksie' Elder, decided to come into the fold for the last few games but looked a tired and haggered old man, who had trouble lifting his leg above ankle height. This was possibly down to the fact that he was tackled severely by one of the Thistle defenders, out with the referees notice. So he says??? Manager Neil Mackay, helped the team out as much as possible but near the end of the first half after a long run from the edge of the eighteen yard box, in his own half, he managed to scythe down the Thistle attacker and give away a penalty. Neil suffered from cramp from this moment on and a young substitute was brought on. Thistle controlled most of the second half and went on to score two more goals, leaving Halkirk with little chance to pull things back. League Match - 23/07/01 Both teams fielded an under-strength
side for this game. 'e BigH boys had other ideas though and, a gutsy performance in both halves, with goals from Darren 'Hairdo' Bain, Graham 'Denims' Robertson and Graham Gunn - secured a well fought victory. In all, the Acks will be aggrieved that they did not go away with any points, as they probably did have most of the possession throughout the match - but a well maintained defence by manager Neil Mackay, playing centre-half (yes, Neil Mackay, goalkeeper and manager) and some excellent saves by 'Big Mac' - stopped the Acks' strike force doing any serious damage. The Acks' goal came from some good play down the middle of the park, splitting the Halkirk midfield and defence, with Alec MacDonald shooting first time, leaving the Halkirk 'shot stopper' no chance. Mention should be given to the young boys who played up-front in this tussle for Halkirk, namely, Russell Bain and Jimmy Dreaves - who led experienced defender 'Stretch' a merry dance at times - managing to set-up one the goals. Is there still hope of staying up............? League Match - 18/07/01 The young Groats team were always in control of this match, with some excellent passing moves breaking the Halkirk defence, time and time again. Halkirk could have an argument that they were missing a string of players and, three of their players had to retire in the first half, namely Martin Bain, David Blackwood and Eain Swanson, through injury and other commitments - but this, I feel, would not have changed the circumstances of the result. Groats were just to slick and look a good and, promising team for the future - considering their average age on the pitch was about 19. One goal either side of the match, sealed victory for Groats. League Match - 09/07/01 I was going to hold my tongue and not say much about this match - but then I thought, "F@@k it" - tell it how it is. Lybster is fast becoming one of Halkirk's dodgy grounds. If a game is to be finished - they're going to have to start play at about 6.00pm, before the dark sets in. In the previous match a serious leg injury, caused by no ill play or bad tackling, led to Gavin Gunn having his leg in plaster for the rest of the season. But in this match, one of the most horrendous and deliberate elbow charges was inflicted on Liam 'e Lilt man' Bremner, to the side of the head, just missing his eye - by George Groat of Lybster, causing Liam to lie shaken and shivering with worry, on the Lybster pitch, for a number of minutes. After a trip to Wick General Hospital, it was decided an overnight stay was necessary for some further checks and recuperation. During the time that Liam was on the ground in difficulty, manager Neil Mackay was trying to help and comfort the stricken lad, with his First-Aid experience, only for the referee to interrupt every second and try and pull him away for a booking, due to one of his comments made earlier. Following this, allegedly, Neil was sent out of the ground (???) and George Groat never received any booking - but there was a man on his way to hospital, with what could have been a serious head injury..... Sort it out for yourself. Nepotism lives. Liam is recovering well but is not sure it's worth the bother coming back to play county football - if there are going to be incidents like this happening. Lybster were one nil up before this incident but the game was evenly contested, with Davie Blackjock hitting the bar from 30 yards, trying to bring Halkirk back into the game. I departed with Liam - but was informed that Halkirk equalised through a Martin Bain header and could have taken the points but missed a number of easy chances, late on in the second half - only for Lybster to snatch victory, with a late goal. Halkirk now look destined for the second division but who knows - there have been surprises before..... Watch this space. League Match - 27/06/01 It all started at a hundred miles an hour and within 10 minutes the score was 2-1 to Halkirk. A goal from David 'you know the Lordies relation' Blackwood started things rolling, with Brian 'Joe King' Elder equalising for Castletown. Almost immediately after the re-start, a Braeside cross from the left produced a bit of a scramble and, I think, the Crispy chappie scored again. Seconds later a hat-trick should have been on the cards and left Halkirk in a strong position - but the woodwork saved the day for Castletown. With about 25 minutes of the game gone, a stupid refereeing decision, by Solomon (Atlantis man) was made - sending a player from each team off, namely Martin Bain and Morrison, for a wee bit of handbags. Following this, the referee threatened to evict a member of the Halkirk travelling support, namely Bobby George, for a loud mouthed and stinging remark towards the official's decision. Bobby started to go a bit red, stutter a bit and ask "where is sexy", providing some hilarity for supporters around him. The second half did not provide any of the good passing moves Halkirk had shown in the previous match v Wick Thistle. Instead, it was a pump it up the park effort, looking for a piece of luck to pull them through. Castletown pushed for the winning strikes and dually received them, if only from a piece of sloppy Halkirk defending and a last goal that looked like a cross but ended up in the back of the net. This result could have been 'eBIG'H's last chance of staying in the top flight, with three teams having to go down this season - but time will tell........ Eain Mackintosh Cup - Quarter Final - 25/06/01 This was by far and away Halkirk's best performance of the season. The team jelled together well, with some quick fire one touch passing sequences that the crowd were more than delighted to watch. By playing this way, Wick Thistle were never allowed into the game allowing Halkirk to control the middle of the field with some ease. Halkirk should have gone ahead with a number of chances throughout the match but Thistle's young goalkeeper pulled off some great saves to keep the Wick team in contention. Wick stole the victory from 'eBIG'H' boys, after constant pressure from Halkirk resulted in the defence being left bare at times. Thistle capitalised on this position with ten minutes remaining grabbing two goals, from the right-hand-side. Halkirk welcomed back, Gavin 'Kenny' Evettes, to the team fold - and within a couple of minutes of coming on as a substitute, he managed to send his opponent 'heels-a-been' - but avoided a booking. Welcome Back - Kenny.... League Match - 20/06/01 If Sky Sports had been filming at this match - Halkirk Goalkeeper, 'Big Mac' - would be in a prime position for an appearance on Soccer AM the following week. A couple of rare mistakes gifted the Stabs an easy win on the night. The first goal came quick, 30 secs, that an onslaught looked on the cards, again - but Halkirk held the ranks together for a final push in the second half. This was not to be with three quick goals from the Stabs securing a win and proving no way back for 'eBIG'H'. Eain Mackintosh Cup - 2nd Round - 18/06/01 Anyway, Halkirk travelled to Wick to play against a team who previously roasted them 3-0 in the league, at home. Would they be able to hold themselves together and forget about the past. The answer was, "YES". The Crispy Man, a player who seems to be constantly injured but always turns up ready for a match, scored the winner to secure Halkirk a place in the third round against either Thrumster or Wick Thistle, at home next Monday. League Match - Highland Amateur Cup - Round 3 - 16/06/01 At the end of the season, probably in the pub when a few beers and nippies have been had, the talking point will be this match and why the hell a team was not able to turn up for the game. From what I have picked up, it has nothing to do with the manager but because some of the players hearts were broken a bit in some of the previous games and couldn't be bothered travelling the distance to get lashed - they thought. If this is the case, I would suggest going back to primary school for a few extra lessons. On this occasion, or any other, the manager should never have to be phoning round at the last minute looking for a team. This is the Highland Amateur Cup, steeped in tradition and trophies to this club and the whole county and the players should be delighted to perform on the day. Now I realise some people who are reading this will say, "What the f@@k does he know about it all?" but in the time I was involved - you could have hung coat-hangers from the goose bumps on my skin because of the nervousness, excitement and adrenalin it provided. So, get a f@@king grip lads and sort it out......... League Match - 13/06/01 Halkirk needed to win this match to keep clear from the bottom rungs. Unfortunately, the Workshops struck a late goal leaving 'eBig'H' without a share of the spoils. Sorry, wasn't at the match. Heard it on the grapevine. League Match - 06/06/01 Halkirk went into this game having to take something from it to avoid the bottom group. The referee managed to, I suppose, provoke an ill tempered match by giving, or not giving, some weird decisions to either team. A cool finish from 'Koom' gave Halkirk the lead only for the Pentlands to reply, soon after. Andy Bain slotted away a nice neat 'Beckhamish' free-kick to revitalise the Halkirk lads but the Pentlands did it again and came back, to go into the second half all square. There were not many chances in the second half and a share of the points would have been a fair result, maybe, in the end. But a controversial off-side decision was not given and 'Pancakes' slotted the ball away - giving Halkirk the win and boosting their chances of staying up. League Match - 04/06/01 Wick Thistle, usually struggled to come from Halkirk with a good result but with a mixture of young and experienced players - playing an excellent passing game, they were definitely the best team Halkirk had played against this season and the score showed this point. Halkirk's keeper 'Big Mac' (my brither), pulled off some excellent saves in the first 15 minutes, to halt the tidelwave but they finished the half six goals down. The second period was slightly better and Halkirk managed to sustain the Thistle pressure allowing only three in the net. The goal of the match came from Halkirk, though - with Graeme Robertson scoring an excellent free-kick with minutes to go. League Match - 28/05/01 Two unfortunate own-goals in the first half by Halkirk debutant, for this season, Davie Eyers, started the route for the Stabs in this game. It may sound strange but Halkirk could have finished the half on equal terms, if they had finished their chances. With one of Halkirk's king-pins (Crispy) having to go off injured, due to ankle problems, gaps started to appear in the team and the stabs started to take control and punish the Halkirk defence. A couple of VERY dubious off-side decisions did not help the Halkirk morale and the final whistle did not come quick enough for the 'eBig'H' boys. League Match - 23/05/01 A lack-lustre performance by Halkirk gave them the score they deserved, on a night that the Wick Rovers goalkeeper had nothing to worry about between the sticks. Although, all three Rovers goals came from break away chances, they were finished clinically leaving the Halkirk keeper with no chance to save 'eBig'H' from further heart break. Highland Amateur Cup - Round 2 -19/05/01 If you were a betting man, you would've said 'eBIG 'H' boys should cruise through to the next round in this tussle against second division team, Thrumster. This was not to be the case in the first half though. With only 3 minutes on the clock, Thrumster should have been one nil up but Liam 'Duck' Bremner produced his 'go-go-gadget legs' to slide in and pull the ball from the onion bag. From then on the away side had some good chances to take the lead but the Halkirk defence stood firm. At the other end it looked like the Halkirk boys were scared to shoot at goal, preferring to try and walk the ball into the net, to no avail. A last effort on the stroke of half-time, from Thrumster, gave them the lead going into the break. Neil Mackay, Halkirk manager - must have had some strong words to say at half-time, either that or there was no way he was wanting a replay because he was going to Orkney the following week, on work commitments - because the boys came out with their tails wagging. Although, the forwards had chance after chance to win the game, it was left to the midfield to secure a place in the next round. The young Mybster lad scored the equaliser, due to 'Crispy' getting his 'pancakes' in the way and, Martin Bain just got a touch on a crossed ball from Andy Bain to head the winner for Halkirk. Credit should be given to Thrumster for their definite improvement since the previous season. League Match -16/05/01 Groats never allowed Halkirk into the game in this contest. Halkirk were struggling to piece a team together before the start of the match. So much so, that Halkirk stalwart and manager, Neil Mackay - had to place his name on the subs bench. Groats scored two early goals in the first half and never looked to be under any pressure throughout the match. Two more in the second gave the Wick team three points for their attack on the top of the league. David Allan Shield - Quarter Finals - 14/05/01 Halkirk tumbled out of the this tournament in painstaking circumstances, for one player. Unfortunately, Gavin 'Gungee' Gunn, is at present in Raigmore Hospital, Inverness with a suspected double leg break which will probably rule him out of the game for the rest of the season and maybe even longer. No bad tackle, or infringement, was the cause of the injury, just two players attacking the ball like any normal circumstance. Lybster, being 1-0 up at this point, handled the situation well and offered Halkirk a replay because of the incident but Halkirk manager Neil Mackay decided that the game should continue despite a couple of players being shaken because of the situation. In all, Lybster were in control throughout the match and never looked like losing the encounter on their home soil. Halkirk keeper, Marc Swanson, managed to save a penalty in the second half - leaving Halkirk a touch of hope to try and grab an equaliser but Lybster finished the game off near the end to progress through to the next round. David Allan Shield - 2nd Round - 07/05/01 Wick Rovers provided a young team
for this match, which Halkirk should have capitalised on early in the first half and
probably gone into half time with a barrel load of goals. Unfortunately, the game
was still all square with 'Jets' and 'Breyside' both hitting the metalwork. League Match - 02/05/01 Halkirk controlled the match for three quarters of the match and missed a couple of easy chances which should have sealed victory - but Lybster grabbed the three points with their only chance of the game with a headed goal from G Groat. The sad side to this game was the double sending off of two Lybster players, near the end of the game, because of their unnecessary reactions to a referees decision causing him to stop the match 5 minutes early. League Match - 30/04/01 Halkirk sealed a win in this match with two excellent goals. For a team who have hardly played together, until now, they decided to play some 'sexy' football. Andy Bain scored the first goal from a great move up the left hand side and crisply sneaked a 20 yard left foot shot into the top corner of the sprawling Workshops keeper. The second was a sweet strike by Kevin Sutherland, from the left again, leaving the keeper with no hope. Highland Amateur Cup - Round 1 - 28/04/01 Halkirk progressed through to the next round of the HA-Cup with a good steady performance. Goals from Kevin Sutherland and Spike sealed the win. An ex-Halkirk player, Sandie Campbell missed a penalty for the Swifts to level the score and could have turned the game but it wasn't to be and Halkirk clinched the win for a tie against Thrumster at home. A sour point to the game was the injury to a key player for Halkirk, David Blackwood - who twisted his always dodgy knee. League Match - 25/04/01 Sorry, wasn't at this game but the
Halkirk lads wanted to give a good performance and put one on the Castletown manager,
Brian 'Tattie, Joe King' Elder (Halkirk kiddie). League Match - 23/04/01 This was Halkirk's first game of the season and the crowd were not sure what they were going to witness because Neil Mackay had been roped into the managerial role, again - due to Gavin Andrew having to quit because of work commitments and, he had just managed to pull a team together. Unfortunately, the game had to be against one of the teams who were not only, probably, one of the contenders to win the league but they had a variety of winter league players in their ranks. This didn't seem to fluster Halkirk in any way because they managed to shake the Acks defence on numerous occasions in the first half, namely Davie Blackwood hitting the bar from 35 yards. The second half saw Acks controlling the match but they never really looked like scoring because the Halkirk defence stood like a scene from Braveheart - not letting anything through. But a strange decision by the manager to remove Darren Bain from the defence allowed the Acks to penetrate and secure the match with two goals in 3 minutes. Overall, this was an excellent performance by a new make shift team and they had nothing to be ashamed off - despite losing two quick goals. League Match - 18/04/01 Cancelled - Waterlogged pitch. End-of-Document | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
