Nairn County FC Online - Cup Final Build-Up: Roads To The Final




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18/09/08 Cup Final Build-Up: Roads To The Final This Sunday Nairn County and Inverness CT meet at Grant Street Park, Inverness in this year's North of Scotland Cup final. And here at Nairn County FC Online we have been counting down the days to the big kick with our latest installment featuring a look at both clubs' route to the show piece occasion. It is Grand Slam September for County but back in July no one could have foreseen the importance of this month when Les Fridge's side started their assault on this competition and indeed their competitive season. The cup started on July 24 when Forres trounced Elgin City at Mosset Park and then County
entered the fray two days later with a home match against Lossiemouth. Willie Barron got the scoring underway when he matched onto a Duncan Jones pass and converted at the front post at the second attempt. It took until after the restart for Nairn to get the all important second goal when the now-departed Johnathan Holland headed home his first goal for the club. The deadly Shaun Kerr opened his account for the season in the 63rd minute when he headed home a Martin MacDonald cross before the former Golspie forward grabbed his second late on after slotting home a Scott Graham feed to complete a comfortable 4-0 victory. Two days later Inverness CT took on Clachnacuddin at Grant Street Park in the first round an progressed with a 3-0 win. Gavin Morrison opened the scoring for the visitors in the first half before former Wick Academy marksman Shane Sutherland doubled their lead just after the hour mark. And Shaun Carrol made sure of the SPL side's progress with the third goal 10 minutes from time. In the quarter finals, County took on a Forres side who had finished above them in the league table the previous season. It was a hard fought derby match at Station Park and it took a
	Willie Barron: Scored the first goal in Nairn's run to the North of Scotland Cup final
single goal to settle in. A diagonal ball over the Forres rear guard after 31 minutes caught out the defence, allowing Kerr to nip in. He fired the ball across the face of goal to Holland who had timed his run to perfection and was on hand to slide home and secure a narrow 1-0 success. ICT also had to work hard for their place in the semi finals. They disposed of Brora Rangers at Dudgeon Park by one goal to nil as well. Scott Struan-Woodhouse struck the decisive blow in first half injury time as the defending champions squeezed into the final four. County saved their best football for the semi final as they dumped Rothes in style at Station Park. Kerr got the scoring underway early on when he out-muscled Rothes defender Michael Dunn before coolly slotting home. Nairn's man of the competition Holland doubled the scoring for the hosts with a parting gift in what was to be his final game for the club. Kerr added a third after Rothes goalkeeper Craig Masterton had dropped Gregg Main's cross and then Duncan Jones capitalised on some woeful Rothes defending to put County four up after a first half in which the visitors were simply outclassed in every department. The icing was put in the cake in the 73rd minute when Kerr netted the goal of the night to complete his hat trick as he lashed home a Jones cross from the right to round off a resounding 5-0 victory. Inverness didn't have it as easy in their semi final match as they took on a Wick Academy side who had knocked out Ross County in the previous round at the Caledonian Stadium. Dale Gillespie gave the hosts a first half lead and with the visitors desperately pushing forward for the equaliser, Inverness caught them on the break as Carroll wrapped up a 2-0 win in injury time with his second goal of the competition. Both sides now meet in Sunday's final at Grant Street Park as Inverness CT seek to retain the trophy they won 12 months ago by defeating Elgin City in the final while County will be looking to get their hands back on the silverware that they last won in 2005.

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