Scaring Brora was fresh boost for Nairn County
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RONNIE Sharp says his Nairn County side should have little to fear after give title hunters Brora Rangers a mighty fright in the Highland League at the weekend.
Only a double from former Ross County, Alloa Athletic and Nairn striker Craig Campbell saved Grant Munro’s hosts from losing to the visitors at the weekend as the thrilling Dudgeon Park contest ended in a 3-3 draw.
Brora’s relentless form had taken them above Buckie Thistle to the top of the table going into the weekend, but Ross Naismith gave Nairn the lead with a goal after 20 minutes when he was put through by Wayne Mackintosh and he fired the ball past Joe Malin into the net.
Forward Gary Kerr crashed home an unstoppable second goal for the visitors seven minutes later as fans throughout the north would have been taking note.
Former Clach hot-shot Paul Brindle pulled one back before the interval, but a Gregg Main penalty, which was conceded by Jamie Duff put Sharp’s troops in control.
Munro looked to his bench for extra pace and firepower and that proved to be vital as Campbell struck twice in the closing 15 minutes to seal a share of the spoils for grateful Brora.
Wayne Mackintosh was sent off for a second bookable offence late on at Brora as Nairn held on, a decision from the referee Liam Duncan that Sharp didn’t agree with.
Mackintosh is expected to miss out this weekend due to suspension was will Greg Main, who was booked in the previous week’s 3-2 defeat against Inverurie Locos.
There are a few Nairn players nursing knocks including Kerr, who will be monitored before the weekend.
Sharp was delighted with his players’ efforts against Brora. He said: "We played very well, but against a team of that quality, they had players they could bring off the bench, such as Craig Campbell, who could make a difference. We got tired in the end and ran out of steam. We also have several players who have a lack of experience at this level, so overall it was a really good result.
"We knew we could not go to Brora and invite them on to us, so we took the game to them. Two good goals put us 2-0 ahead and if we had held on to that by half-time that could have made a difference, but we scored the third goal before they put on fresh legs and it made a difference."
Nairn hit the road to Banff on Saturday to face a Deveronvale side that won 2-1 at Station Park in August on the second day of the league season.
However, should 13th-placed Nairn come away with a victory they will close in on a group of clubs in and around mid-table.
Sharp insists it’s good just to be focused on climbing the table.
He added: "We’re looking forward to Saturday because we’ve done well away from home lately with the win at Huntly and the draw at Brora. It will still be a tough one and they’ve had a decent season too, winning 7-2 a fortnight ago against (Strathspey Thistle).
"There are teams who have had good seasons and we are just between four and six points behind them, although we are not setting any targets at this stage, but enjoying looking up rather than down."
Vale’s fixture against Fort William was postponed last weekend.
*** Deveronvale have also been drawn against Nairn in the first round of the Highland League Cup, with the tie set for Banff on February 11.
*** Three key Nairn County players agreed contract extensions at Station Park this week.
Callum Maclean, Jack Maclean and Jordan Macrae were all due to be free agents in the summer, but have now pledged their futures to Sharp’s side.The Nairn boss said: "I am delighted that we have managed to tie these players up to new contracts."In the short time since I have been in the job, they have been superb to work with. They all have great attitudes and have really bought into what we are trying to achieve."These are the sorts of players we want to have in the squad – young and hungry with a willingness to learn and improve their games. They are all here for the right reasons and the fact that they have pledged their futures to us is a massive endorsement of what everyone at the club is trying to achieve."We have other players at the club who are in the final year of their contracts and we will be having conversations with them all over the next couple of months.
"Hopefully, we will have more good news on that front soon but in the meantime, I would like to thank the committee for concluding these deals."
