Spain Park, Highland Football League, 25/7/26
Banks o’ Dee Football Club
Founded – 1902
Nickname – The Dee, The Rechabites
Selected Honours – Scottish Junior Cup-1956/57, Highland League Cup – 2022/23 Aberdeenshire Cup – 2021/22 and 2024/25 Aberdeenshire Shield– 2021/22 and 2023/24. North Region Superleague – 2007/08, 2008/09, 2015/16, 2015/16, 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2021/22. Grill League Cup – 2013/14, 2016/17, 2018/19 and 2021/22. North Regional Cup – 1969/70, 1970/71, 1973/74, 1976/77, 1978/79, 1980/81, 1981/82, 1983/84, 1984/85, 2010/11, 2017/18 and 2018/19. McLeman Cup – 1924/25, 1937/38, 1938/39, 1950/51, 1955/56, 1958/59, 1960/61, 1967/68, 1969/70, 1978/79, 1981/82, 1986/87, 1990/91, 2015/16, 2016/17, 2018/19 and 2021/22
The first day of the season, the smell of fresh grass, a pre-match pint in a beer garden, the patterns cut in the turf, big crowds full of anticipation ….so we opted for Banks o’ Dee v Wick Academy with its smell of crumbled tyres, nae boozers in the vicinity, black tinge to the park and a very low crowd(surprisingly low for day one, but maybe the Dons at home was a factor). But Spain Park was handy for us after a morning in the toon.
With the signings the Dee have made, notably Grady McGrath and Kevin Hanratty we were both confident of a simple Dee win v Wick who had drawn the longest journey of their season on day one. The score line may show the win but it was far from comfortable. To the chorus of the Scorries minstrel whos lone singing brought many a laugh the HFL kicked off for 2026/27. The early stages saw Wick pinned back but despite the pressure they gave away no chances with their steely defending. I was a big fan of Jack Henry. Good speaker, good leader and 100% into every challenge. Wick were working well as a unit keeping the hosts out. The Scorries did come into the game and looked like they were to take the lead when James Boyd was bearing down on a through ball, but his effort which was venomous was kept out brilliantly by the stand in Dee keeper Jack Robertson. An ace save low to his right. On through balls, it was as if every ball Wick played was getting through and it was another that created the next chance when Boyd was again through, this time his shot beat Robertson but was cleared off the line by Zack Stephen. Another warming for the home side. Another then came when once again a through ball saw Marc Coghill up against one defender, with Boyd to his left surely the square ball was on but greed got the better of him and he fluffed his lines despite two bites of the cherry followed by a roasting from his team mate. All the Dee had conjured up was a snap shot from McGrath, numerous wayward crosses out of play and a couple of efforts that didnt test More in the Scorries goal. Wick were arguably the better team going into the break. The score line may have been blank but there were chances, some tough tackles and sound defensive display from the visitors. A decent watch.
HT 0 v 0
Half time brought some amusement when whoever was in charge of the tunes was doing it through their phone but clearly forgot and stuck on the Aberdeen v Kelty Hearts highlights meaning Spain Park was treated to the tones of Rob McLean over the tannoy. HT also brought us the biggest dog both of us had ever seen. I had to ask the owner(who I think ran a fitba camp Wee Man was at a couple of weeks ago) what the hell this beast was. A St Bernard/Great Dane cross. Good grief, no messing there.
The second half was a bit different, the Dee were the better team over all but they were allowed to get their tails up early from a gift of a goal. After all the praise I gave to Wick’s defending they chucked one here. A ball in from the left off the foot of Dugald Farquhar found an unmarked Alasdair Stark who got something on it(it may not have been his head and maybe a shoulder) sending it across goal and in. Very poor from a Wick point of view but the Dee werent to care. This only five minutes into the half. This introduced a raft of niggly fouls for the rest of the game. Banks o’ Dee continued to probe but it came to nothing, but they also continued to let through ball in but were never punished as Wick striker Marc MacGregor was more often than not too isolated. A second came for the Dee when Hamish McLeod seemed to run forever finally making it into the box and in one of those moments you could see coming a mile away, was halved by Jamie Steven. Such an obviously incoming infringement. New boy McGrath took on the duties and made no mistake. Game over given the time on the clock. The Dee will know they were not at their best but three points on day one is all that matters, they wont care how they came about as the team is still gelling.
Welcome back to the greatest league in the world.
Entrance – Me £12, Wee Man £6
Attendance – 127 (Rough Head Count)
Pie – £12 Pie, Coffee, Fanta x 2, Pringles
Pint – They are not called the Rechabites for nothing. Nothing near by.
Score Predictions – Me 3 v 1, Wee Man 2 v 0
Season Score Prediction Totals – Me 0 v 1 Wee Man
FITBAWBAG 