Huntly had to hunt for the first win of their curtailed Highland League football season
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A TOUGH start paved the way for a difficult Huntly season, which was eventually ended by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Christie Park side’s campaign finished five games short of completion when league officials called a halt to proceedings in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
No-one at Huntly had any cause for complaint that play stopped early in what had been a topsy-turvy year of action for the Black and Golds.
Manager Martin Skinner made wholesale changes to his squad in an effort to compensate for a series of 2019 departures.
Reece McKeown and Craig Dorrat made returns to the club, with keeper Euan Storrier back for a second loan spell from Forres Mechanics.
Defender Logan Johnstone completed a switch from Caley Thistle while fellow stopper Chris Herd made the move from Inverurie Locos, and striker Paul Esslemont came in from Dyce.
More loan business was carried out to bring in Liam MacDonald from Peterhead - the move later became permanent - with early season deals struck with Buckie to farm out front man Declan Milne and Cove Rangers for teenage wing sensation Nathan Meres.
By the time many of Skinner’s deals were struck, the season was already underway and Huntly endured a torrid start.
A shock opening day defeat at a young Lossiemouth started a run of six straight league losses, with Huntly only hanging on above bottom side Clach by virtue of one goal more scored.
Draws with Strathspey Thistle and Keith stopped the losing sequence, while an unlucky Scottish Cup exit at a strong Linlithgow Rose outfit served to finally turn the tide for Skinner’s side.
After ten matches in all competitions without victory, a 3-2 win over Wick Academy was secured and a good run of results was on the horizon.
Back-to-back 0-0 draws against Formartine and Clach were soon followed by an incredible 4-3 league win over league leaders Buckie Thistle, sparking a winning run.
Soon Huntly had six wins in seven games under their belt, making progress to the Aberdeenshire Shield semi-finals and over the first hurdle in the Highland League Cup after a first away success of the campaign at Wick - an impressive 3-0 triumph in Caithness.
New league leaders Brora ended Huntly’s League Cup interest with a 6-0 win at Christie Park.
There was plenty late heartache when Inverurie came from behind to steal victory in the Shield semis, and again in the next league match when Huntly led Deveronvale after 89 minutes before two last-gasp strikes left the Christie Park men empty-handed.
A run of six straight losses was arrested by more good form, holding Locos to a league draw then beating Keith and all but ending Fraserburgh’s title hopes with a 2-2 stalemate in February.
The term ended in turbulent fashion for Huntly the following month.
A visit to Buckie’s Victoria Park looked on course for a league double when the visitors twice led, before Huntly had two players and two coaches sent off amid ugly scenes.
Jags went on to win 4-2, and Skinner’s men then travelled to Fraserburgh without key personnel and took a 7-0 thrashing.
Days later, the plug was pulled on a season which saw Huntly end up in 13th place, and keen to make improvements next time round.
