Match: Buckie Thistle v Strathspey Thistle
Date: 13/08/2022
Venue: Victoria Park, Buckie
Competition: Highland League
Entry Fee: £10
Travel: £14.90
Miles completed today: 416
Total miles remaining: 34776
I have a list of how far every ground in Scotland is from my house – only 8 are further away than Buckie Thistle. Still, when I started this project Buckie was one of my most anticipated.
Playing in green and white hoops you may wonder if there’s a Celtic connection and the answer is yes (or at least they think so) Buckie Thistle have played in the hoops since 1908 and whilst I couldn’t find confirmation for definite, it’s folklore that Celtic actually donated kits to them and the hoops and colours have been adopted ever since.
The club have played Highland League football for over 100 years and have won the title 11 times and these days Buckie are one of the best in the league and a prime candidate for promotion.
Preview
The Highland League is extremely unforgiving. Buckie Thistle actually went on a 25 game unbeaten streak that saw out the season, won 23 of the 25 games and still only finished second in the league! It’s early days this season but they’ve already defeated champions Fraserburgh and they were the team I backed to win the league before a ball was kicked so it’s all rosy at the moment.
The opponents are Strathspey Thistle and for reasons I’ve mentioned above, it’s a must win. It’s fair to say the two teams are at opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to the league placings. Buckie with aspirations to win the title and Strathspey probably looking to maintain their Highland League status. That’s not a sleight against them, it’s competitive at both ends but there is a fair gulf between the top echelons and the lower.
Odds:
Buckie Thistle 1/25
Draw 8/1
Strathspey Thistle 18/1
I made my usual pre match prediction, I went 8-0 Buckie Thistle and incase you don’t believe me…
The Ground
Before I arrived at the ground I took a wee detour to see where Buckie’s other team played. Buckie Rovers were part of the north juniors but are currently in abeyance and haven’t been seen post covid. Here’s hoping they’re back soon and I get to visit the town again!
On to Victoria Park and this ground is easily one of my favourites. One seated stand that’s elevated and looks a little unconventional, I can’t think of one that looks similar. At the other end there’s a large sheltered terracing and plenty of green space around the rest of the park to take in the game. A large hospitality suite, a club shop and a large cafe is all on site too.
What struck me immediately is the amount of people wearing replica shirts. I thought adults adorning the club shirts had all but died out but not here and it’s a glorious sight.
We now get on to the important part – the pie. There are loads of options at Buckie Thistle including steak bridies which were massive but the offer of a steak and black pudding pie caught my eye and I’m putting it out there that it’s the best pie I’ve had in Scottish football. Incredible!
The Game
I always take some sort of notes during a game and formulate it into a match report but looking back at these notes it’s just an endless list of Buckie Thistle chances.
A ball played drilled through to Josh Peters had the Strathspey defenders asking for offside but with no flag and Peters’ touch a little heavy it was Sam Urquhart who was sharpest to react and put the ball into the net with just a couple of minutes on the clock.
I was impressed with Kevin Fraser and Andrew MacAskill in the middle of the park. A great range of passing, good decision making and the two absolutely dominated the game.
You had to have seen the rest of the first half to believe it. Buckie were desperate to put the game to bed early on and threw everything at the Strathy Jags and it’d take a rocket scientist to work out how the ball didn’t end up in the net on numerous occasions. We had effort off the post, bar, a couple of ‘should do betters’ and a remarkable goalkeeping performance from Michael MacCallum in goal. Buckie did get a second before half time when and Andrew MacAskill corner was met by the head of Jack Murray whose effort was powered into the top bin – no saving that.
The second half was much the same as the first but with more conviction. Strathspey actually came close themselves when Owen Loveland crashed a long range effort off the bar but that was as good as it got for the away side.
Josh Peters showed a bit of skill with an exquisite touch out of the sky on the halfway line and ran the defender all the way to the box where he slotted the ball into the net for 3.
Another flurry of Buckie attacks culminated in Buckie’s fourth as Urquhart got in behind and squared the ball to Kyle MacLeod for a tap in. The game was over by this point but Buckie smelt blood and were ruthless in their approach.
Just four minutes later it was Peters with another and this was my pick of the bunch as an excellent Shaun Wood cross was met by a diving header which was angled perfectly to beat MacCallum.
Peters then added his third and fourth within four minutes of each other – this guy will be a huge acquisition.
The only downside to Buckie’s afternoon was a red card for Lewis MacKinnon. The referee indicated that the studs were high and through all the fog and being 70 yards away I can’t call that with any certainty.
It was all smiles again as Declan Milne netted the final goal of the game to round off a bit of a doing.
Full time: Buckie Thistle 8-0 Strathspey Thistle
MOTM: Josh Peters
There were a number of good performances. Buckie to a man were excellent but despite conceding 8 goals Strathy keeper Michael MacCallum was one of the best players on the park. However, I can’t possibly overlook a man scoring 4 goals and bullying the away sides defence for 90 minutes so Josh Peters is the obvious choice.
He’ll hold the ball up, he’ll win headers, beat a man, links up play very well and can finish. He’s literally an all round striker and he’ll tear up the Highland League – of this I have no doubt.
Summary
To be fair to Strathspey Thistle, their season is not defined on matches like this. Buckie were expected to win convincingly and they did exactly that. They were my favourites to win the title before a ball was kicked and I saw nothing to change my mind in that respect.
A team full of quality putting on a show, I certainly got my money’s worth.
As for the club and the ground, I love it. How I wish that Buckie wasn’t so far from Glasgow and I was able to attend on a more regular basis. They’re a big club in a good place and although the pyramid does not lend itself to teams being promoted from tier 5 I would like to see Buckie being able to showcase their town and club on a national stage. I will be back, of this I’m sure and I’ll leave you with a poem from the 1930’s and some photos underneath.
There’s a famous football team
It’s name’s known far and wide
They wear the famous green and white
Renowned from Wick to Clyde
Their records made in seasons past
Will stand till’ times no more
The heroes names will ever last
Their deeds thrill to the core
Let other teams their team support
One thought consoles us all
These foes admit that Thistle are
Supreme in north football
Though some are fresh from Junior ranks
They’re artists one and all
Possessing each the Thistle touch
They never waste a ball
The master touch marks ever more
From back to forward line
Their parlour passing goes to prove
They’re real Thistle all the time
GroundhopScot 