Staxigoe will have to get by without top marksman after recent scoring spree
Staxigoe United have been scoring goals for fun but they will have to make do without their leading marksman for the remainder of the campaign.
Graham MacNab scored four times in a 9-1 victory over Keiss at Bayview Park on Tuesday night as Staxigoe moved up to fourth in Caithness AFA Division One. It was the 33-year-old striker’s last outing before starting a 13-match suspension.
MacNab had also scored four when the same teams met in Wick eight days earlier. Staxigoe won 8-0 on that occasion.
He had a five-goal haul in an 8-1 Highland Amateur Cup victory over Watten at the end of last month.
MacNab incurred his ban after a triple red card in a league match at John O’Groats and it takes effect from June 27.
Staxigoe player/manager Martin Banks, commenting on his team’s recent free-scoring form, said: “A lot of that is down to Graham MacNab but he is suspended now for 13 games.
“I was counting it up and I’m sure he’s on 22 goals or something.
“He missed the start of the season, then came back and now he’s missing 13 games, and he’s still going to finish probably by far our top goalscorer.
“If he played the whole season, every game, the way he was going he’d be on over 40 goals by the end of the season.”
Banks’s side became the first winners of the Stannergill Cup earlier this month, and will be aiming to retain the David Allan Shield, but they went out of the Highland Amateur Cup at the hands of High Ormlie Hotspur last weekend.
James Mackintosh’s second-half header proved to be the only goal, with High Ormlie holding on after Aidan Reid was sent off with about 15 minutes to go.
Banks said: “That was a blow on Saturday, a hard one to take. Even when it was 11 versus 11, I thought we were by far the better team in the second half.
“Then they went down to 10 men but it didn’t think it changed anything – we just couldn’t put the ball in the back of the net.”
Banks was also among the scorers at Keiss on Tuesday, with the other Staxigoe goals coming from Arran Bain, Mark Mackenzie and Jamie Burns (2). William Mackay got a consolation for Keiss.
Asked whether he had any sympathy for the first division’s bottom club, having put 17 goals past them in back-to-back league fixtures, Banks said: “I think that’s one of the strongest teams we’ve had and Keiss were struggling for numbers.
“We played them at the start of the season in the Highland Amateur Cup preliminary round and we struggled, we only beat them 4-3. I think the games just fell at the wrong time for them, especially with the form that Graham was in.”
Results – Saturday – Highland Amateur Cup, round three (ties involving Caithness clubs): High Ormlie Hotspur 1, Staxigoe United 0; Inver 5, Thurso Acks 1 (after extra time); Pentland United 5, Inverness Athletic 3 (after extra time); Wick Groats 1, Avoch 2.
Sunday – SWF Highlands and Islands League: Caithness 3, Sutherland 2.
Tuesday – Division One: John O’Groats 5, Castletown 2; Keiss 1, Staxigoe United 9; Pentland United 5, Lybster 1; Wick Groats 1, High Ormlie Hotspur 2. Division Two: Top Joe’s 0, Acks 7.
Wednesday – Division Two: Swifts 2, Thurso Pentland 2; Watten 1, Wick Thistle 5.
Fixtures – Friday, June 27 – Eain Mackintosh Cup semi-finals: Halkirk v Castletown; Pentland United v High Ormlie Hotspur (both 7.15pm). Division Two: Acks v Wick Thistle (7.30pm).
Saturday, June 28 – Friendly: Orkney v Wick Academy (Kirkwall, 12.30pm).
Sunday, June 29 – SWF Highlands and Islands League: Clachnacuddin v Caithness (Evanton, 1pm).
Monday, June 30 – Division Two: Halkirk v Swifts; Thurso Pentland v Watten; Wick Thistle v Top Joe’s (all 7.30pm).
Tuesday, July 1 – Division One: High Ormlie Hotspur v Keiss; Staxigoe United v Pentland United (both 7.30pm).
Wednesday, July 2 – Division One: Castletown v Wick Groats; Lybster v John O’Groats (both 7.30pm).
Thursday, July 3 – Division Two: Thurso Pentland v Halkirk; Wick Thistle v Swifts (both 7.30pm).
Friday, July 4 – Division Two: Acks v Watten (7.30pm).
CAFA standings – Division One: 1 Pentland United (played 9, points 25); 2 Wick Groats (9, 19); 3 High Ormlie Hotspur (9, 19); 4 Staxigoe United (9, 14); 5 Lybster (9, 12); 6 John O’Groats (9, 8); 7 Castletown (9, 4); 8 Keiss (9, 3).
Division Two: 1 Wick Thistle (played 7, points 21); 2 Thurso Pentland (8, 16); 3 Acks (7, 15); 4 Watten (8, 8); 5 Swifts (7, 6); 6 Halkirk (7, 2); 7 Top Joe’s (8, 0). Halkirk deducted six points for playing an ineligible player in two league fixtures.
SWF Highlands and Islands League standings: 1 Buckie (played 6, points 18); 2 Caithness (6, 12); 3 Clachnacuddin (6, 12); 4 Orkney (6, 9); 5 Sutherland (7, 6); 6 Nairn St Ninian (7, 0).