Lossiemouth look to climb Highland League table as they face Keith at Kynoch Park in Moray derby
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FRESH from ending a three-month wait for a Lossiemouth win, manager Joe Russell has set his sights on the next one.
The Coasters completed a league double over Turriff United with a 2-1 success over the Banffshire outfit at Grant Park on Saturday.
Today, Russell and his men head to Kynoch Park to take on a Keith side they defeated 2-0 at home in September, sensing the possibility of another double.
But the manager is wary that the Maroons have made strides of improvement under boss Craig Ewen, winning three of their last five matches including back-to-back successes over Strathspey Thistle (5-1) and Clach (1-0).
With Keith being just two points above Lossie in the league table, Russell sees it as a Moray derby with plenty at stake.
“Keith beat Clach at the weekend so it will be tough,” he said. “They have come on a bit from when we last played them.
“We scored early doors in the last game and speaking to Craig Ewen after it, he said they had to rethink their game plan and didn’t quite manage it.
“But with the changes they have made this game will be a different kettle of fish.
“They are right in front of us in the league so it’s our target to try and get above them and we can do that if we win the game on Saturday - so that is the motivation for the boys, to climb up the league.
“This area of the table is tight and between us and tenth there is only three pints so there’s quite a lot to play for over the coming weeks. The boys shouldn’t be short of motivation.”
Lossiemouth had lost nine and drawn two of their 11 competitive contests since defeating Fort William in October, so the Turriff win last week was a huge relief.
Building on the goalless draw with Forres a week earlier, the Coasters struggled for a breakthrough in the first half but came up with the goods after the break.
Midfielder Ryan Sewell, who completed a move to Huntly this week, made it happen with two corner kicks.
The first found the head of Connor Macaulay for the opener and Sewell’s second flag kick on the hour went straight in to give Lossie a cushion which was to prove important.
For a late Keir Smith penalty for Turriff put the result back in the balance.
“We were well deserving of our two goals in the second half, but the penalty made things a bit nervy,” said Russell, who hopes to give on-loan Elgin City youngster Max Taylor some game time at Keith today.
Sewell and Brodie Allen's Lossie contracts expired at the end of this season so the club received nominal fees from Huntly for their mid-season switch.
