I enjoy scoring against Wick, says Mackay after late winner for Nairn
Steven Mackay declared that he loves scoring against Wick Academy after he grabbed a late winner for Nairn County in Saturday's Highland League encounter at Harmsworth Park.
The 41-year-old Nairn boss came off the bench with just under a quarter of an hour to go and headed home from close range in the 90th minute to seal a 2-1 victory for the visitors.
The former Brora player/manager, who took charge at Station Park in October, said: “I enjoy scoring against Wick, I'm not going to lie.
“I try to come on and influence the game if I can. It was nice to get a goal, and obviously to score so late on was very pleasing.”
Mackay has guided the Wee County to eighth in the table after replacing Ronnie Sharp.
Marc Macgregor put Wick ahead after 16 minutes with an angled shot that Dylan Maclean got a hand to but couldn't keep out.
Angus Dey equalised with a brilliant overhead kick after 43 minutes and a draw looked likely until Mackay's late intervention when he got on the end of an Andrew Greig free kick from wide on the left and nodded it in at the back post.
“I think in the second half we created more than enough opportunities to win the game," Mackay said. "Our final ball let us down at times. We hit the post and had a couple of bad decisions late on with the final pass.
“It's never an easy place to come and win a football match so we're delighted to leave here with the three points.
“When we came in, the remit was to try and get up the table as quickly as possible. We've worked on a few things with the boys, predominantly their fitness.
“They're responded really well, and that's 14 games we've played now with just one defeat.
“It has been a good run. We have drawn a lot of games this season, but it's games like this that you want to see if you can convert the draws into wins.”
Mackay was adamant that his team should have been awarded a spot-kick in the first half when Nairn's Kenny McKenzie was involved in a painful collision with Wick goalkeeper Graeme Williamson as they rose to meet a cross.
The ball struck a post and referee Billy Baxter halted the game for several minutes as both players received treatment for head knocks. McKenzie had to be replaced but Williamson was able to carry on.
“If the goalkeeper has come off his line like that, and has committed, he has to win the ball – and he hasn't,” Mackay said.
“Kenny has got there first, he's been brave, he's won the header, he's unlucky he hasn't scored. The momentum of the goalie has carried him through and wiped Kenny out.
“I said to the referee at half-time, anywhere else on the pitch it's a free kick. It's a late challenge – you have to win the ball, and he didn't.
“Kenny has now got a big shiner and a cut on his eye for his efforts.
“You hope that decisions like that go your way and I didn't think it was a difficult one. It had no impact on the game, thankfully, but I did think it was a penalty.”
Ross Tokely, who will be 44 in March, was at the heart of the Nairn County defence in Saturday's match against Wick Academy – 27 years and one day after his first trip to Harmsworth Park as a teenage substitute for Huntly in a Highland League fixture on February 17, 1996.
Tokely, who is Inverness Caley Thistle's record appearance holder, joined Nairn in October, having previously come out of retirement to play for St Duthus in the North Caledonian League.