David Gormley paid tribute to his derby-day heroes last night after Kilwinning Rangers stuffed Irvine Meadow.
The West of Scotland League returned with the Eglinton showdown in the Premier Division at freezing Buffs Park.
Kilwinning stormed into a 4-0 lead inside an hour thanks to goals from Jordan Stuart, Mark Lamont, Ben Lewis and Dylan Mackin.
Medda netted twice in the space of four minutes through a Callum Graham penalty and a Ross Urquhart strike to reduce the deficit but they were little more than consolation efforts.
Boss Gormley hopes a fourth league win of the season can be a springboard for Buffs as they move into 2023 with a renewed sense of confidence – and local bragging rights.
He admitted this was a result to be celebrated as goal-crazy Kilwinning were able to get the Hogmanay party started early.
He told the Irvine Herald: "I thought we were in total control and we played the way we wanted which was on the front foot.
"Defenders defended and the front five were able to express themselves. I'm delighted with the result and every goal we scored was a cracker. There are no negatives. They scored two goals but there were never two goals between us in that game.
"Taking everything into consideration regarding the festive period, part-time players and trying to get them in training, it's hard. But everything clicked for us and it was good to see."
Gormley added: "I've been saying to the guys before every game, let's get three points and a springboard in the league. But this is the night our season starts."
Medda embarked on a promising attack in the 17th minute. Connor Boyd fed Graham who laid the ball off for Urquhart but his low strike skidded into keeper Ewan Henderson's grasp.
The home side broke the deadlock seven minutes later. Patient build-up resulted in Jordan Stuart being given far too much time and space to take aim and fire home past keeper Marc Waters.
It was 2-0 on the half-hour mark as Lamont drilled a long-range effort in off the post to leave Medda reeling at the interval.
But the Irvine men didn't learn their lesson and being slow to press in the final third proved costly as Buffs scored twice in the space of a couple of second-half minutes.
Firstly, Lewis took a ball in stride inside the box, turned and curled a delightful goal into the far corner of the net.
And then Mackin produced practically a carbon copy when he unleashed a fierce strike with the ball finding the same spot.
In the 73rd minute, Medda pulled one back when Graham converted a penalty after he had been tripped in the area by Buffs defender Aldin El-Zubaidi.
Thoughts of a comeback swirled when they made it 4-2. Bryan Wharton's long throw was punched by Henderson as far as the falling Urquhart who got just enough purchase on his shot as it squeezed home.
However, Kilwinning regained control and saw out the final few minutes with the minimum of fuss to get back into the winner's enclosure.
Medda coaches Gary Russell and Kevin Deeney continue to take the team as manager George Grierson recovers from a hip injury.
Russell said: "We did show positive signs to try and get back into the game but we know we need to be better and that is something that we're still working on.
"The message basically to the guys is a fresh start in the new year. We will look at things in that first training session and try and build from there. We know we have players in the changing room who can do it."
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