TIME WELL SERVED
Young is positive as he prepares for his 100th game in charge of Binos
Standing in the flickering lights of the Forthbank dressing room on a freezing Tuesday night, Darren Young might have wondered what he had let himself in for after taking the Stirling Albion job.
That midweek game in December 2021 - a 1-0 defeat to Elgin City in front of 383 diehards - saw him forced to pick between just 11 fit firstteamers, while his assistant battled with the new Omicron strain of Covid running rampant.
But fast forward a little over two and a half years and the Stirling gaffer is now preparing to take his 100th game in charge of the Binos, with the mind firmly focused on the task of keeping Albion in the third tier.
For the 45-year-old, it has been quite the journey - but one he insists has had lots of positive moments to reflect on.
Young told the Observer: “It’s been a great 100 games, been lots of ups and a few downs but the club has made real progress. You can see that with the crowds being up and that’s down to the performances of the players.
“I remember back to that first game, the SFA actually forced us to play the game despite only having 11 players because we had an U20s side, most of whom I hadn’t even met by that point.
“My assistant James [Creaney] had Covid and couldn’t be there, the lights kept going on and off and we got beat 1-0.
“It’s just picked up since then and obviously winning the league last season was unbelievable - we knew we had the squad to have a right good go at it and we just got stronger and stronger as it went on.
“But now we want to progress, to stay in this league to improve further and build on what we have. We’ve seen how tough it will be but we’re into the final quarter now and having played the top two teams already will help.
The Binos host Montrose in a crucial League One encounter at Forthbank on Saturday, eager to take advantage of their strong home record to get the points needed to secure a second season at this level.
They have lost only four times at Forthbank this season, compared to ten times on the road - meaning it may be how Stirling do in their remaining four home games that could go a long way to deciding their fate.
The sides have met twice since the New Year, with Albion claiming arguably their best away result of the season at Links Park with a 1-0 win, before the Gable Endies got their revenge with a 2-0 reverse at Forthbank.
“We’ve learned a lot this season and so have the players but at this stage, it is about sticking together and performing with the backing of the home fans and hopefully winning those games”, Young added.
“We want to get as many points on the board as possible and we’re confident we can do what is required from now to the end of the season to achieve what we want.”
One player who looks unlikely to help with the run-in is long-term absentee Ross Davidson.
The midfielder has been out since mid September with injury and he now looks a long shot to get back on the pitch for the rest of the campaign after suffering a setback following a previous return to the pitch.
Young said: “It would be amazing if we could get Ross back, but he tried to come back before and broke down, so we don’t want to push it unless we have to and it’s just about management until the end of the season.”