Buckie Ladies’ are pride of the town as gutsy display brings hat-trick of League Cup triumphs
No guts, no glory, as the saying goes and for the winners of the Highlands and Islands League Cup on Saturday it was to be that courage that saw them through.
Buckie Ladies made the long trip north to Golspie to tackle Sutherland in what was effectively a home game for the Highlanders.
The Gordon Park side were hoping to claim the trophy for a record third time and, in what turned out to be a nerve-fraying, nail-biting 90 minutes for Buckie and their supporters it was not the Highlanders who were to prove the feared raiders as a Rheo Laurenson long range screamer on 35 minutes was enough to claim glory. The goal followed a huge sigh of relief from the holders when Sutherland had a goal chalked off for offside.
Scoring in finals is becoming something of a habit for the midfielder, who netted the equaliser - also a stunning strike - in last year’s contest with Caithness.
The holders had to call on all their resilience and experience to see out the game and take the cup back down the road with them.
It was also to be a special afternoon for Buckie’s goalkeeper, Sophia Golebiewski, who added both the SWF (Scottish Women’s Football) and Buckie supporters’ Player of the Match awards to her winner’s medal.
The victory marked the second cup final triumph in a row for Buckie Ladies manager Laura Duncan, who was assistant manager when the side first claimed the silverware.
She said: “It was nail-biting, such a close game.
“To be honest, Sutherland were the better team on the day but we dug deep and saw the game out. Sutherland weren’t as physical as we expected them to be and for me this was the best I’ve seen them play.
“Everyone was brilliant, our resilience was something else and all of the players were back helping defend when necessary. It wasn’t pretty football, but it got the job done - as a manager I couldn’t have asked for more from the team.
“Sophia [Golebiewski] was outstanding, she was truly awesome. Midfielder Skye Smith also gave a tremendous performance, she ran herself into the ground before she was substituted.
“A special mention goes out to all of the supporters who made the long journey north to back us. There was a full coach of supporters plus all those who made their own way to the ground. According to the SWF there were around 300 fans at the game - well, for me they were louder than all of the Sutherland supporters!”
Duncan took some time to reflect on just how far Buckie Ladies have come as a team - it seems hard to believe that it is not that many years ago when the side were regularly on the wrong end of heavy defeats.
She added: “It feels so good to win the cup again.
“It’s such an achievement for the team and to have the young girls there from the development side was brilliant. It’s a big encouragement for them, in a few years it could be them lifting the cup.
“In a way the cup felt more important to me this season than the league as there have been so many postponements, cancellations and forfeits in the league this year.”
However, there will not be too much time for Buckie Ladies to bask in their cup glory as they face a crunch league title decider this coming Sunday against Ross County. Buckie hammered the Dingwall side in their last league encounter 7-0 but Duncan was reading nothing into that result.
She said: “We need to beat Ross County to win the league, it’s as simple as that.
“I think they’ll field a stronger side than they did the last time but I think Saturday showed just how much strength, character and talent we have.”
Should Ross County win or draw - and in the latter scenario, Sutherland draw or lose - they will be crowned champions, bringing to an end Buckie’s two-year reign. However, should the game end in a tie and Sutherland win, they will take the title.
The game is due to kick off at 1pm at the Highland Football Academy, Dingwall.
Follow Buckie Ladies’ Facebook page for updates and match details.
