Peterhead welcomed Forfar to Balmoor this week, looking to bounce back from the disappointing 1-0 loss at the hands of the Spartans. The Blue Toon were undefeated in 2025 until that loss, and were looking to get back to winning ways, and keep the pressure on league leaders East Fife. On the other hand, Forfar have had a torrid start to the new year, without a win since the 14th of December, and rock bottom of League Two.
There were two changes to the team that started in the capital last weekend, with Cammy Smith returning to the starting eleven for the first time since November, and Jamie Walker making his first start for the Blue Toon. Dylan Forrest and Peter Pawlett made way.
Peterhead used the blustery conditions to their advantage almost immediately, with the wind behind their back in the first half. A ball lofted over the top of the defence exposed Forfar’s high line, Jack Brown brought the ball under control, and started driving towards goal. The Forfar centre backs recovered well, and held Brown up at the edge of the box, so he looked up and slid the ball into the path of Kieran Shanks, making a supporting run to his right. Shanks’ got his shot away, which took a big deflection, leaving McCallum rooted to the spot and putting Peterhead in front.
The Blue Toon kept the pressure on their opposition, with Ciaran Dunne regularly finding space to get crosses into the box, playing in a more advanced role again today. One of these cutbacks found Cammy Smith just left of the penalty spot, who shifted the ball onto his right foot and bent an effort towards the far post, out of the reach of the Forfar goalkeeper but blocked on the line by Allan. Just moments later, in the 22nd minute, the hosts were awarded a penalty, after the referee deemed that an arm was used to block a Peterhead cross from the left hand side. Kieran Shanks made no mistake from 12 yards, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way to score his 8th goal in his last 9 games. Blessing Oluyemi was rarely called into action in the first half, with all the big chances coming the way of the hosts. The biggest of these chances came on the stroke of half time, lovely build up play down the right flank sent Max Barry bearing down on goal to put Peterhead 3 goals in front, but McCallum made himself big and closed the angle just enough to deny Barry.
Half-time: Peterhead 2-0 Forfar Athletic
It was certainly a tale of two halves at Balmoor, with Peterhead struggling to get going in the second half now that the wind was in their faces. Forfar capitalised on this almost immediately, a through ball from the midfield found the run of McLean who began driving towards goal, the cries of offside from Peterhead defenders falling on deaf ears. McLean dribbled into the penalty area and shifted the ball onto his left foot away from David Wilson, before firing low and hard past Oluyemi from the angle and into the corner. With momentum and the weather now on their side, Forfar piled on the pressure, with Peterhead struggling to create any shooting opportunities of their own. Maclean came close to an equaliser on 53 minutes, meeting a cross from the left wing with a header which looked goal-bound, but came back off the crossbar, and the majority of Balmoor could breathe a huge sigh of relief. Peterhead made four changes to try and get a foothold on the game once again and stifle the unrelenting pressure on their defence, but to no avail. The equaliser eventually came on 85 minutes, Forfar substitute Byrne finding himself 1-on-1 with Blessing Oluyemi. Byrne slid the ball past the Peterhead stopper, and got his side back on level terms. The Blue Toon finally seemed to find some joy in the attacking third in the closing stages, desperate to get back in front and claim all three points. Peterhead’s last big chance came the way of substitute Seb Ross in the 89th minute, who used his body well to turn his opposite number after Andy McCarthy had played a ball into his feet, but Ross couldn’t convert the chance, his shot well saved by McCallum.
Full-time: Peterhead 2-2 Forfar Athletic
(Shanks 3’, 23’) (McLean 49’) (Byrne 85’)
Starting XI: Oluyemi, Goldie, Jason Brown, Wilson, Walker, McCarthy, Jack Brown (Danny Strachan 75’), Smith (Forrest 84’), Barry (Seb Ross 84’), Dunne (Colloty 75’), Shanks.
