John Gorrod
Deputy Sports Editor
Football club captain Keiran Everden is upbeat about his side’s chances of claiming Taxis Cup glory.
With Cali not expected to pose a serious threat, Strathclyde, who have defeated Glasgow twice this campaign, will be the team to beat.
Everden reflected on the season to date. He said, “On Wednesdays it has been very good; we finished second in the division. Unfortunately, Strathclyde beat us twice in two quite tight games and they got promoted, which was tough.
“But, by and large, it has been quite solid. The 2s and 3s have had quite solid seasons as well and they finished second in their tables which was good. Then, on Saturdays, it has been a bit more mixed. It’s been quite tough as we had a lot of cup games at the start of the season and the bad weather stopped a lot of league games – I think we still have 12 or 13 league games to go. But all four teams have done quite well, especially the Under 21s. They have a good group of guys with a new coach so it’s been really good.”
On Wednesday, Everden and his troops go into battle with Strathclyde once more. He is hopeful that it is a case of third time lucky. “We got beat 1-0 in the first game of the season and 2-1 the other week,” he said. “Both games were tight and it is maybe just a case of using that as a motivation. Obviously the Taxis Cup is a big event and we don’t want to lose a third game against them. We know that we can match them, they are not a much better team than us.”
And the captain was eager to pick out those who he needs to play to their full potential. He said, “We have a couple of really key players like Sean Dunion in the middle of the park. If he is on form, then he can win games for us. It’s the same with Andy Pender, he scored a goal for us down at Steps a few weeks ago. If those two are on form, then we have a really good chance.”
Looking ahead to next season, there are plans for the 1s to ply their trade in the highly-regarded Lowland League. Everden said, “It’s something we are looking into. If you want to join the Lowland League, you have to get an SFA licence which is something we’re working with Sport and Recreation and Keith Joss on at the moment. If we get that, it is something we’re looking to do. Edinburgh University and Stirling University are in the Lowland League now and we feel, as a club moving forward, it would be beneficial for us to be playing at a higher level.”
