Huntly manager Colin Charlesworth was thrilled to see his Christie Park side start the new year with a convincing win at Rothes to end a three-game losing streak
A thumping 6-1 win at Rothes was the perfect way for Huntly to kick off their year and banish a three-game losing streak.
Manager Colin Charlesworth was impressed by the manner of his team’s victory at MacKessack Park on Saturday, with rustiness expected after two blank weekends this year due to the weather.
Two goals and two assists by top scorer Angus Grant may have grabbed the headlines but Charlesworth was thrilled to see five players on the scoresheet contributing to a good team performance.
He saw former Aberdeen teenager Kai Watson open the scoring with his first goal for the Christie Park club after just five minutes.
Sam Robertson’s tenth of the campaign and a third by Ross Still put the away side in command at the break.
Grant scored two including a penalty to sandwich Ross Logan’s goal for the home side and James Connelly was also on target for Huntly.
Charlesworth said Watson’s goal masked a sticky opening spell for his team but they soon found their flow.
“Although we scored early, I thought we started the game pretty sluggish and were kind of going through the motions a wee bit,” he said.
“We could have had a bit more of an emphatic result had we kind of started with the same grit and determination we had had in previous games. But it was to be expected.
“It was always going to be a tough one to come back and shake off the rustiness, but I’m delighted to get the result and as emphatic as it was, that was good.
“I said it after the game on Saturday, the top teams in the league get a spread of goals, and if we're serious about being a top team in this league, then we have to as well, and we have to share that about.
“Sam Robertson in January, he's hit 10 goals from playing in a wide position which is impressive, and then we've got people like Ross Still, Kai Watson, James Connelly all chipping in with goals as well and just sharing that load and taking a bit of the pressures off Angus.
“Angus got a couple of assists as well as his goals, so it's good that we can get that sort of contribution across the pitch.”
While Huntly have had a fine season and pushed into the top six of the league, they did lose their final three games of 2024.
A Highland league Cup penalty shoot-out loss to Deveronvale was followed by defeats to Buckie and Brechin in the league, but no cause for concern for their manager.
“Within the camp, there's no need for us to panic, and we know that we've got good players.
“Over the festive period we fell victim to postponements and training being cancelled, but we've managed to get a good few sessions in now and it was good to dust off the cobwebs and make a bit of a statement that we're still going to be kicking and pushing on this season now, and that we want to break into that top six.”