Iftikhar admits 'journeys are taking a lot out of us' as Fort are beaten at Wick
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Fort William manager Shadab Iftikhar admitted that travelling commitments are taking their toll on his players after they were beaten 3-2 by Wick Academy on Saturday.
The Lochaber side – who have been recruiting heavily since Iftikhar was appointed at the end of November – found themselves three down early in the second half at Harmsworth Park but responded with two goals of their own and Iftikhar felt that a draw would have been a fair result.
Fort are having to play all their games away from home this season as a result of problems with the pitch at Claggan Park and they are fighting against potential relegation from the Highland League. They are in bottom place with two points from 21 matches.
“In the first half we were a little bit poor but in the second half we were a lot better,” Iftikhar said.
“We didn't get to grips with the game too well early on but credit to the players, they showed a lot of character, a lot of mentality, and they probably deserved a point.”
Iftikhar was unhappy with the fixture scheduling which meant that Fort had to travel to Brora on Wednesday night, returning in the early hours of Thursday, followed by a trip to Wick a couple of days later. He called it “ridiculous”.
Matters were not helped from Fort's point of view by the early kick-off on Saturday – 2.30pm rather than 3pm – following the recent weather-related damage to a floodlight pylon at Harmsworth Park.
“When you play Brora away on a Wednesday and then you play Wick away on a Saturday, I think that's unbelievable,” he said. “It's no coincidence that the journeys are taking a lot out of us.”
Iftikhar, who was part of Belgium's backroom team in the European Championship finals last summer through his links with manager Roberto Martinez, says he has been impressed with the standard of the Highland League.
“It's a very competitive league, a very good league – I was told that, and my research told me that as well,” he said.
When asked whether he thought Fort could climb away from the foot of the table, Iftikhar replied: “A hundred per cent.”
After Brora beat Fort 3-0 at Dudgeon Park in midweek, the Sutherland club's manager Craig Campbell tweeted: “I think you might see Fort William start picking up some more points in the coming weeks and [it] might become interesting at both ends of the table.”
Strathspey Thistle dropped to second bottom on Saturday after losing 4-0 to Formartine United while Turriff United were racking up a remarkable 6-0 away win against Deveronvale.
Fort are eight points behind the Strathy Jags, having played the same number of games. Turriff are now two points better off than Strathspey but have played five games more than the bottom two.
Buckie Thistle made it 14 league wins in a row as they saw off Brechin City 1-0 at Victoria Park.
Max Barry’s early goal via a deflected free kick secured all three points for the Jags.
The result allows Buckie to keep pace with Fraserburgh in the title race, although the Broch are back on top thanks to their superior goal difference after they scored seven without reply against Clachnacuddin.
Brora's Colin Williamson struck in stoppage time to give his team a 2-1 victory over Huntly at Christie Park.
Highland League results: Buckie Thistle 1, Brechin City 0; Deveronvale 0, Turriff United 6; Formartine United 4, Strathspey Thistle 0; Fraserburgh 7, Clachnacuddin 0; Huntly 1, Brora Rangers 2; Inverurie Locos 3, Nairn County 2; Keith 1, Forres Mechanics 2; Rothes 4, Lossiemouth 0; Wick Academy 3, Fort William 2.
Highland League fixtures – Wednesday: Fort William v Keith (at Kynoch Park).
Saturday: Brechin City v Inverurie Locos; Brora Rangers v Wick Academy; Clachnacuddin v Formartine United; Forres Mechanics v Buckie Thistle; Fort William v Strathspey Thistle; Keith v Deveronvale; Lossiemouth v Fraserburgh; Nairn County v Huntly; Turriff United v Rothes.
