Armadale Thistle are currently organising a reunion for players that were part of the club 30 years ago – from 1986 to 1992.
The event is set to take place in the Goth Public House in Armadale on Sunday, May 1, from 1pm to 5pm, tickets are currently priced at £25 a head.
The club’s organising committee also extended its invitation to players that were involved with the club before or after the stated time period.
Slated to be at the event is ex-Celtic footballer, Scottish International, and one-time Armadale Thistle coach Joe Craig, who famously scored a header in his international debut against Sweden as a 75th minute sub before he had even touched the ball.
Also to be at the event is Ally Brazil, who played over 200 matches for Hibs and played all three games of the marathon in the 1979 Scottish Cup final, narrowly losing to Rangers in extra time.
Armadale Thistle club president Bill Baird said: “The club has had an interesting history since the old squad left 30 odd years ago.
“In 1992 the club wound itself up and became a private limited company. That was a disaster that went pear-shaped eventually.
“The supporters self-organised to rescue the club in 2006 and we’ve been running it since then.”
Others involved with the club apart from players, like former committee members, supporters, and sponsors, will also be welcome at the event.
From 1986 to 1992 the club saw a rebuilding period – with the team winning the East of Scotland B Division and the Craigie Cup.
The squad also finished third in the East of Scotland A Division on three separate occasions as well as reaching the Brown Cup final.
Lunch will be provided at the event, with after-lunch entertainment to be delivered by friends of the club Eric Davidson and Andy Chung
A number of ex-players / coaching staff will speak at the event, sharing old stories and anecdotes from previous campaigns.
The organising committee for the reunion is still looking to get in touch with the following players:
Colin Baxter - midfield, Graham Shaw - goalkeeper, Kevin Hepburn - left midfield, George Proudfoot - midfield, Ian Welsh - full back, Owen Dougan - central midfield, Ian McMillan - midfield, Alan Ferguson - goalkeeper and Scott Cowan - centre half.
Anyone interested in attending should get in touch as soon as possible by contacting former club secretary Jimmy Smeaton at: Smeats59@gmail.com
The organising committee can also be reached by leaving a message on the ‘Armadale Thistle Doon the Volley’ Facebook page.
Bill went on to speak about future plans for the club. He said: “Right now we’re seeing massive investment going into the club – the council just gave us a £1 million grant to get the pitch upgraded.
“It’s quite an exciting time for the club just now, we’re third in the league – pulling in a good amount of supporters – it’s honestly the best I’ve seen the club in 30 odd years, so it’ll be good to get the old guard in to show them the plans.”
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