Wick Academy manager Gary Manson says five-year-olds know not to cross ball in your own box as he blasts goals conceded against Huntly as criminal
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The Scorries found themselves 3-0 down after just 30 minutes with Andrew Hunter, Ross Still and Angus Grant all finding the net.
The third goal was a result of poor communication in the Wick defence as Grant was able to pounce on a misguided pass in the box and fire into the net.
Academy fought back through goals from Mark Macadie and Jack Henry and were still within a goal of a point going into injury time.
But late strikes from Cameron Blackstock and a second from Hunter gave Huntly all three points.
Manson says his team can't expect much from a match if they go 3-0 behind. But he says kids would have known not to have committed some of the mistakes his players did which led to them conceding goals.
He said: "Two of the goals we gave away in the first half were criminal. The ball across the box, you know as a five-year-old you are not meant to cross the ball along your own box. That was symptomatic of our first half and the goals we gave away."
He added: "The lesson we have learned is you can't give away a three goal head start and expect anything out of the game.
"We gave it a good go, even before they scored the fourth one, we had a decent scramble for chances we could have taken.
"It wasn't to be, poor goals to give away is what cost us in the end."
Despite the poor first half hour, Manson was pleased with how his team responded to try and rescue a point.
But he says it would have been undeserved due to their showing in the first 30 minutes.
He said: "It was a spirited fightback and in the second half there was nothing in it. It was end to end and no real chances until we had to open up and go for it.
"Then we went down to 10 men and they picked us off at the end. It was disappointing not to take anything from the game. But when you give away goals like that you don't deserve anything."
Wick Academy were reduced to 10 men with six minutes remaining when Jack Halliday was sent off after receiving a straight red card on Gavin Elphinstone.
Manson felt the midfielder's frustration came from a decision by the referee not to give a foul he felt was committed by a Huntly player moments before.
"In my head I was debating if it was a yellow or red card for the Huntly player who committed the foul at the corner, but the referee didn't give a foul. "They broke forward and Jack got frustrated about that, he tried to trip the player up but I don't think he tried to injure him.
"But that is him suspended, I thought the referee was too quick to get the red card out, I thought the yellow card would have sufficed."
