Pentland United co-manager expects a ‘really competitive’ county league season
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Michael Gray believes “every team seems to be getting stronger” as the new Caithness Amateur Football Association season gets under way.
The Pentland United co-manager was speaking after a delayed start to the campaign as the opening two nights were wiped out by the weather. Matches scheduled for Watten, Castletown and Wick on Tuesday and Wednesday all fell victim to waterlogged pitches.
“I think it’ll be a really competitive league, and it sounds as if the second division is going to be really competitive as well – which is good, because competitive games bring out the best in players,” Gray said.
“When it’s one-sided, that doesn't tend to generate an awful lot of development. People come to watch competitive battles and they want to see close games where maybe a bit of quality wins it.”
The 2023 season was one of underachievement for United, who had been county champions the year before. They were runners-up to Wick Groats in Division One, failed to reach the final in any of the local knockout tournaments and lost in the preliminary round of the Highland Amateur Cup, having been beaten finalists in 2022.
"It wouldn't be difficult to eclipse last season, that's for sure,” Gray admitted. “We're entering every competition with a view to getting as far as we can.
“With the players we’ve got there is certainly no reason why we can’t be successful this year.
"We certainly feel that there's a little bit more of a positive vibe from the group. I don’t know if that comes from some of them having better winter seasons than they had last year or generally just that they’re feeling better physically.
“But they just look and feel a little bit more positive than this time last year, so that’s something for us to work on.”
Ex-Wick Academy stalwart Ross Allan has joined the Stabbies.
“That’s a good bonus,” Gray said. “Ross can cover quite a lot of positions and he brings with him a lot of experience and quality.
“Murray Mackintosh is back from injury as well. That’s really good because he took a very serious injury about 18 months ago and there was a lot of concern whether he would ever make it back.
“But he’s back training and he's hoping to contribute this year too.
“Obviously we've lost Marc Macgregor as he’s signed a two-year contract with Wick Academy. We also lost two of our young boys to Castletown, unfortunately – Owen Bain and Josh Sutherland. That was a bit of a blow to us.
“But we're quite comfortable with the group that we've got.”
Gray is keenly aware of how summer football is part of the social fabric of Caithness, with a county league game acting as a “natural meeting point” for the community.
“That can never be overlooked,” he said. “Whilst the football is important, it’s very much balanced by the off-field community spirit it generates, people coming together. Probably the pandemic highlighted the importance of it more than ever.”
John O’Groats v Staxigoe United, scheduled for Thursday, was another cancellation and there is a question mark over Wick Groats v Lybster, due the same night. If the Upper Bignold proves to be unplayable, Wick Groats v Lybster will be provisionally rearranged for Friday.
CAFA fixtures: Friday – Division Two: Acks v Top Joe’s; Keiss v Pentland. Tuesday – Division One: John O’Groats v High Ormlie Hotspur; Staxigoe United v Wick Groats. Division Two: Swifts v Watten.
Wednesday – Division One: Castletown v Pentland United; Lybster v Wick Thistle. Division Two: Keiss v Acks; Top Joe’s v Halkirk (all 6.30pm).
