Sutherland still in contention for Highlands and Islands League title after missing out on glory in defeat to Buckie
Sutherland lost out in the Highlands and Islands Cup final to Buckie last weekend – but they still have a chance of being crowned league champions this Sunday.
Buckie made it a hat-trick of cup victories in a closely-fought contest in Golspie, where it is estimated over 300 supporters were in attendance.
Sutherland thought they had taken the lead in the first half, only for the offside flag to be raised to deny them the advantage.
That may have been the turning point in the tie, as Buckie took the lead in the 35th minute through a long-range effort from Rheo Laurenson.
It was the second year in-a-row that Laurenson had scored in the final, having also netted the equaliser in last year’s victory for Buckie over Caithness.
Despite plenty of effort from Sutherland, that goal would prove to be decisive as Buckie held on for a 1-0 victory.
Perhaps indicative of the balance of the game was the fact that Buckie goalkeeper Sophia Golebiewski was named player of the match by both governing body Scottish Women’s Football and the Buckie supporters.
Buckie boss Laura Duncan also admitted that Sutherland were the better team on the day, saying: “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.”
Sutherland will have to try and put their cup disappointment behind them quickly, as they go into this weekend’s final round of league fixtures as one of three teams still with a chance of being crowned champions.
Sutherland, Buckie and Ross County all remain in contention, setting up a dramatic finale to the campaign.
Where the crown ends up is out of Sutherlands hands to an extent, though, with top two County and Buckie playing each other.
If there is a winner between those two, then the victor will also be able to call themselves champions – which would either see County win the title in their debut season, or Buckie retain the trophy.
However, if those two draw, Sutherland can leapfrog them both into top spot with a win over Caithness owing to their superior difference compared to current leaders Ross County.
