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Myles Gaffney scored his first Locos goal as the Railwaymen secured a maiden victory for Dean Donaldson from a tight game at Kynoch Park.
Gaffney opened the scoring just after the hour mark to give Locos something to show for an impressive spell of attacking football at the start of the second half following a largely forgettable opening 45 minutes. Substitute Jay Halliday then netted a late winner after the hosts had levelled.
Although Locos had the bulk of possession on a difficult surface, it was the home side who had the better of what chances were created in that first half. Zack Ellis had to be alert to keep out efforts from Gavin Elphinstone and James Brownie in quick succession. For Locos part, when they did find themselves in good positions, the final ball too often let them down.
Everybody would have been hoping for an improvement after the break and Locos certainly showed up as an attacking force during the opening exchanges of the second half. Cole Anderson showed early intent with a drive from distance that flew wide before Craig Reid produced a good save to deny Nathan Meres.
Meres was then a whisker away from connecting with Gaffney’s low ball in from the left as Locos started to rack up the opportunities. The breakthrough came as a Maroons attack was broken up and Gaffney was released by Anderson. The on-loan striker kept ahead of the defender and finished coolly past the advancing Reid.
For all Locos new found threat, it was by no means one way traffic and Keith were committing numbers forward when the opportunity arose. On one such occasion, Elphinstone decided to try his luck from distance. The shot looked like it would be saved comfortably by Ellis but a bounce off the uneven surface took the ball over the goalkeeper to level the scores.
Nathan McKeown tried to do similar just a couple of minutes later and when Ellis parried his attempt, Connor Killoh thought he had put Keith in front from the rebound only to be foiled by the offside flag. Both teams went looking for a winner, with Keith coming close through Liam Duncan, who forced a good save from Ellis. It was Locos who would take the crucial points though. A throw on the left hand side was helped on to Halliday who made no mistake from 10 yards. The hosts threw everything at Locos in the remaining five minutes of play, and six of added time, but Locos held firm for a very welcome win.
There was little to choose between these two teams and Keith will no doubt feel they could have got something from the game. Locos attacking intent after the break, and their resilience having been pegged back, will have pleased Donaldson, who watched most of the game from the stands having been dismissed by a referee who was quick to produce cards all afternoon.
Next up for Locos is a midweek trip to Forres Mechanics before welcoming Deveronvale to Harlaw Park, games in which they will be looking to build on this result.
