Young Scorries fight back to claim a share of the points at Lossiemouth
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Wick Academy showed dogged resilience in their away match against Lossiemouth in SHFL Under 18 North to fight back from 2-0 and then 3-1 down to steal a point in a 3-3 draw, writes Steven Hughes.
The young Scorries found themselves trailing 1-0 inside the opening 10 minutes after failing to deal with a floated free kick from just inside their own half, allowing Noah Murray to score.
It got worse for the visitors on 15 minutes as Murray spun on the half-volley to fire the ball home from 20 yards.
Academy were in need of a swift response and they got one after Morgan Kennedy beat the opposition full-back out wide. Kennedy cut it back to Kian Mackay, who picked out Lucas Reid at the back post and he finished at the second attempt.
The Caithness outfit soon found themselves back at square one, however, after a neat turn by the ever-dangerous Murray created space for him to drive into the box and finish to restore the Coasters' two-goal advantage on the half-hour mark.
Academy refused to lie down and, after an exquisite pass from Matthew Aitkenhead, Reid again found himself with the ball in the Lossiemouth danger area. This time he turned provider as a low cross picked out Kennedy, who made no mistake from close range.
Academy came out firing in the second half in search of an equaliser. The constant pressure led to several chances, including a strike from Kennedy that hit the woodwork.
Aitkenhead restored parity after making room for himself in the 18-yard box and beating the keeper at his near post. Despite dominating proceedings the young Scorries could not find a fourth goal.
Coach Scott Bremner was impressed with his side's tenacity in clawing back the deficit, but stressed a need to start matches with the same intensity as they finished with at Lossiemouth.
He said: “I was really impressed with the boys' determination in the second half, not only to find an equaliser but to go out and try to win the game.
"However, I feel there was a complacency in the way we started in the first half and ultimately we need to be able to get this out of our system over a full 90 minutes when it comes to facing other top sides in this league.”
Wick sit fifth in the 12-team division after four matches. They had beaten Forres Mechanics 4-0 at home the week before, with goals from Carter Mackay, Morgan Kennedy, Matthew Aitkenhead and Kian Mackay.
