Kevin Mackie knows it’s a long and winding road back to the SPFL from the Highland League for Brechin City.
But that hasn’t stopped the City chairman from enjoying himself on every stage of the journey.
Mackie made it his mission to ‘put the smile back on the faces of the people of Brechin’ when he took over at the helm last summer.
Since then, Mackie has re-invented Brechin as a community club.
He has appointed highly-rated former Hearts star Andy Kirk as manager and enlisted the expertise of ex-Dundee United and Scotland boss Craig Levein in a director of football-style role.
Brechin hitting the Highland League heights
City have also found their feet in the Highland League and are unbeaten in 90 minutes, in all competitions, for 30 GAMES.
They currently sit level on points with Buckie Thistle at the top, with two games in hand. Ironically, Buckie were the last side to beat Brechin, in February.
It’s small wonder Mackie is smiling again.
His enthusiasm and passion for Brechin is infectious and he positively glows when he talks about his local club.
“I’ve always cared passionately about Brechin,” said Mackie. “I’ve always believed we could achieve success.
“But I don’t think our club moved forward in line with others over time. They had a more long-term vision than we had.
“Apple upgrade their phones once a year for a reason and we have to keep up with trends.
“We’re setting different standards and expectations and it’s down to us to deliver.
“If we can have the people in Brechin believing in our club then nothing is impossible.
“Brechin once had Scotland’s number one nightclub, Flicks. The pioneer of radar, Robert Watson-Watt, was from here.
“For a small place we’ve had a lot of success stories and I’ll always focus on solutions and not be obsessed by problems.
“I look at New Zealand for inspiration. It’s a small, yet very ambitious country where kids grow up dreaming and believing they can pull on the famous All Blacks jersey.
“Belief can take you far. It’s easy to be negative and depressed but we are doing it differently at Brechin.
“People are proud to say they come from here and we want them to be proud of their football club.
“We won’t always get it right but we will always do it with a smile.”
Brechin bouncing back under Kevin Mackie
At the time of Mackie’s appointment in May 2021, the club were at their lowest point.
They had just dropped into the Highland League for the first time in their history.
Facing journeys across the north of Scotland, including a 480-mile round trip to Wick Academy, City were on a real downer.
It was a downward spiral that can be traced back to their promotion to the Championship in 2017.
City created a new, unwanted record, by going through an entire season in the Championship without a win.
They went on to win just 15 of 123 games from the start of that Championship season, dropping out of the SPFL after a pyramid play-off with Kelty Hearts.
But since that defeat Mackie has invested time, money and energy to reinvigorate his local club, using his positive outlook on life to shape their recovery plan.
With plans for a new artificial surface to create a community space at Glebe Park and a newly-appointed commercial director in Keith Haggart, Brechin are aiming to become less reliant on gate money.
They are thinking out of the box and held a very successful World Cup lunch – which saw former City youth star Harry Souttar dialling in for a live video chat from Australia’s Qatar base.
They are also making a real fist at returning to the SPFL.
He added: “If we go up – and that’s still a huge challenge – our first aim will be to consolidate.
“We’ll have done the hard part, then it’s time to build.
“If we looked at a ten-year plan it would be to become an established League One side.
🍾 We have just one table remaining for what promises to be a hugely enjoyable afternoon next week at the @cargolfhotel for our Sportmans Lunch.
Get in quick to avoid disappointment! To book please e-mail keith.haggart@brechincity.com pic.twitter.com/Q2vwX9NVcF
— Brechin City FC (@BrechinCityFC) November 15, 2022
“Success every year would be amazing but be realistic. You can’t keep throwing money at it, it has to be sustainable success on and off the park.
“Everyone at this club – the staff, players, fans, community and volunteers – are all playing their part in making that happen.”
To regain their SPFL status, Brechin must win both the Highland League and a two-tie pyramid play-off against the Lowland League winners and the League Two bottom side.
So what if City can’t get over the line this term?
Mackie joked: “If we don’t get promotion, the Samaritans will be on autodial!
“Seriously though, we won’t stop.
“We’ll work harder to increase revenue off-the-field because there are exceptional costs in the Highland League that aren’t as prevalent in the SPFL – such as travel.
“I’ve been really struck by the camaraderie in the Highland League.
“Everyone is so welcoming, friendly and encouraging and our fans have bought into it.
“We are taking three full buses up to Buckie on December 17th. That’s 150 people backing us and there will be a lot more going by car.
“People want to be associated with success. They want to be happy and follow winning teams.
“For three or four years, our fans witnessed a lot of defeats. They saw Brechin as a club in decline.
“It had become a bit negative and depressing and we wanted to change things.
“The support we’ve had from the community in a short space of time has been phenomenal.”
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