We owe it to our fans to play Cup tie at home
HOSTING RANGERS WILL BE A THRILL FOR FRASERBURGH
FRASERBURGH chairman Finlay Noble knows for sure that — win or lose this Sunday — the Highland League club’s Scottish Cup encounter with Rangers will be an event that is talked about locally for generations.
Yet he believes it could have been filed under ‘instantly forgettable’ if the minnows had agreed to switch their dream tie to Pittodrie or nearby Peterhead, a move Noble feared would have reduced the match to almost friendly status.
Tiny Bellslea Park holds only 1,865 fans, with the Ibrox giants allocated just 350 tickets for the fourth-round clash to be shown live on television this weekend.
Such was the demand from Broch regulars and season-ticket holders that there has not even been a public sale of briefs.
Noble, for his part, was determined from day one to resist pressure to open up the match to a wider audience.
Playing the game at home has retained a greater sense of occasion, and the Fraserburgh stalwart believes his club are destined to recreate the kind of club history that saw them beat a mighty Dundee side at home in 1959 and entertain Celtic’s European Cup finalists in 1970 in aid of the local lifeboat tragedy.
‘Drawing Rangers at our own park is a dream come true as far as the club is concerned,’ enthused Noble.
‘The Scottish Cup is a big thing for non-league teams and there’s nothing that galvanises the community better than a run in the competition.
‘But to get one of the big clubs in world football coming here for a competitive game is fantastic for the club and for the area.
‘That’s why we were so determined to keep the game here at Bellslea because, if we’d moved it to Aberdeen or Peterhead, it would have become more like a friendly.
‘There wouldn’t have been the same atmosphere or buzz about the occasion.
‘It was also important to reward the players who have got us through to this round and to reward the fans who come and support us every week by playing it at Bellslea.
‘There are guys who come here whatever the weather or opposition to see Fraserburgh play in the Highland League and it just wouldn’t have been right to tell them that we were going somewhere else.
‘This is probably a once-in-alifetime occasion. We know how rare these matches are, so we should lap it up for what it is.
‘We have some older supporters who still talk about the day we beat a really good Dundee team here in 1959.
‘And it was the same with the lifeboat game in 1970 when Celtic came up to raise funds after the disaster struck. That was so important for the whole community.
‘We want the people who are here on Sunday to be able to look back with the same fond memories of the time when Fraserburgh welcomed Rangers and, hopefully, gave them a right good game.’
Even within the modestlyfinanced realms of the Highland League, Fraserburgh are a unique club.
They have earned titles and cup triumphs in the northern game without anywhere near the same level of spending as their peers.
Year in, year out, the Broch have invested in local talent and built sides around players from their own community — yet they are currently the strongest challengers to title favourites Cove Rangers. However, upsetting the odds and securing the league title would create a huge dilemma for Noble and his beloved club.
Through his active role within the SFA, he helped set up the pyramid system which gives each season’s champions of the Highland and Lowland leagues their opportunity to replace the SPFL’s bottom club.
The Fraserburgh chairman isn’t totally convinced, however, that moving up to the senior game would be the best option for his club.
‘The pyramid system is something we were very supportive of but we know it isn’t for everybody,’ said Noble. ‘I was heavily involved in the talks to set it up in the first place and there were a lot of daft things said on both sides to be fair.
‘I would doubt if we could survive in the senior leagues, as the difficulty would be attracting players here.
‘But, if we win the league, it is something we will be trying for.
‘We will definitely attempt to move up to League Two and join the SPFL because there is a safety net available.
‘If you go up and live beyond your means, there is a chance to get relegated back into the Highland League and there are worse places than that, so we would give it a go.
‘But there are clubs who I have no doubt can live with it.
‘If Cove Rangers win the Highland League and get promoted this season, I wouldn’t expect to see them ever drop back down again.
‘They are in an ideal location to do well in the senior divisions but there are other places in our league that are basically based in villages, so it would be hard to compete at that level.
‘But that doesn’t mean that teams who are progressive enough shouldn’t have the right to try it out.’