Brechin City will hope to return to league action tomorrow afternoon with a trip north to face Huntly, ending a six-week wait since our last league outing.
Despite considerable rainfall across the Aberdeenshire area, there are currently no concerns noted with the playing surface at Christie Park and there is optimism the game can go ahead.
The long pause does little to dull the stakes, with City keen to hit the ground running and maintain pressure at the top end of the table having slipped to 4th during the recent layoff.
It will also mark Andy Kirk’s first league fixture since returning to the Club, following a positive start to his second spell in charge with a victory over Nairn County in the R Davidson Highland League Cup a fortnight ago.
Awaiting City at Christie Park is a Huntly side that currently occupy 10th position in the league but under the guidance of recently appointed former Manager Graeme Stewart, formerly of Buckie Thistle, they will be undoubtedly be looking to kick on and have a strong finish to the season.
TEAM NEWS
City will welcome new signings Andy McNeil, Lewis Martin, Calvin Beattie and Callum Hannah into the squad, although the game will come too soon for fellow new recruit Kieran Inglis who continues his recovery from an injury sustained whilst at Forfar Athletic. Mitchell Findlay is a doubt with a knee injury, but otherwise Manager Andy Kirk should have the rest of his squad available to choose from.
MANAGERS COMMENTS
Reflecting on the last match against Nairn County a fortnight ago, Manager Andy Kirk commented, “We managed to have a few training sessions in the run up to the game and it gave players the opportunity to show me what they were capable of. However it’s been frustrating as you just want to get a game and it hasn’t given me an opportunity to see the players in a game situation.
“It was tough weather conditions against Nairn and all things considered I thought we did well overall. In the first half we had some good bits of play and pressing. We probably should have scored a couple more goals throughout the game. Second half was difficult with the wind against us but we had chances to make it more comfortable but credit to Nairn as they pushed us all the way.
“The effort was there and we did some of the things that we’ve been working on. Sometimes we overplayed things a bit which is natural because we are trying to change how we do things but overall I couldn’t fault the players. It was important we started together as a group with a win.
“It was a great finish from Mitchell for the winner and from my first time at Brechin we had a team with a mentality to keep pushing until the end of the game. We did that against Nairn and kept going for the winner and got our reward for it in the last minute.“
With the fixture against Formartine United postponed last week, City arranged a bounce game against Dundee North End which ended 2-2. Andy added, “We tried a few players in different positions last Saturday and changed the shape to have a look at one or two things. In the first half we were nowhere near where I want my Brechin team to be but second half we looked a bit better and got ourselves back in the game. The game was all about getting minutes under the belts of some players.“
Looking ahead to tomorrow’s fixture against Huntly, he said, “Every team in this league provide us with stern opposition and no matter who we play we want to put in a good level of performance and get the win. The weather conditions and the pitch will play their part so we’re expecting a really tough game.“
ADMISSION INFORMATION
Tomorrow’s match at Christie Park kicks off at 3pm. Admission prices are £12 for adults, £6 concessions (U16’s and over 65’s) and U12’s go free when accompanied by a paying adult. Extra £2 for the stand. Cash and card are accepted at the turnstiles.
SUPPORTERS TRAVEL
Brechin City Supporters’ Club are running a bus to the game which will leave Glebe Park at 11:30am. Very limited seats remaining. To book your spot, text 07740 856565. Prices are £15 for members/U16’s and £20 for non-members.
MATCH OFFICIALS
Tomorrow’s match referee is Alex Ross, assisted by Megan McKay and Dave McLaren.
LAST TIME OUT
City’s last fixture came a fortnight ago in unfamiliar ‘home’ surroundings. A waterlogged pitch at Glebe Park saw the R Davidson Highland League 2nd round tie against Nairn County take place at Balmoral Stadium. Fraser Dingwall prodded the visitors in front only for Grady McGrath to level from the spot after Fraser Macleod had been fouled inside the box.
Cillian Sheridan put City ahead just after the hour mark, however an excellent long-range striker from Andrew Greig put Nairn level. Just as the game looked to be heading towards penalties, substitute Mitchell Findlay lashed home the winner in stoppage time.
Huntly, likewise, have also been hit with postponements and have only played one fixture since the 27th December. They defeated Deveronvale 2-0 at Christie Park in the Highland League a fortnight ago, with goals coming from Michael Clark and Callum Murray.
PREVIOUS MEETING
Brechin City 2-0 Huntly – 10 September 2025
City secured a 2-0 win against Huntly in a midweek fixture in September thanks to goals at the end of each half. After a competitive first period, Mitchell Findlay opened the scoring deep into first-half stoppage time with a powerful finish that came off the post, giving the hosts a slender lead at the break.
Brechin had earlier come close through a couple of strong efforts from Finlay Allan, including one that hit the crossbar, while Huntly had an early chance saved and saw an offside goal ruled out.
The second half was more cagey, with both teams struggling to create clear chances in difficult conditions but Brechin eventually put the game beyond doubt in the 85th minute when Grady McGrath reacted quickest to a poorly dealt corner and turned home from close range to seal the win.
