The Wisdom of Iain Bain - on football in the Highlands

This week Iain Bain's editorial dwells on County's 3-3 result down at the other Station Park. Iain examines how football typifies "the battle of the stereotypes that Highlanders face in general."

Maybe other gurnites saw the recent pictures on TV of Highland cattle in a snow covered Somerset field and, like Iain, heard the patronising remarks about the Highland scene. Iain writes:

"[...]Well it is all good fun and maybe we can forgive southern metropolitans their glib and predictable homour. It goes with their territory. 

But what is harder to take is when we get the same sort of stuff from fellow Scots in the Central Belt. Sometimes it is difficult to believe we are in the same country when we confront the patronising ignorance of people south of the Highland Line."

Iain's analysis will probably be shared by many of the Wee County's fans. At the moment there is animated discussion on the Wee County's "We believe!" facebook page about comments made by Ayr United's manager, a certain Mark Roberts: "We’re going to play Forfar four times this season anyway so I’d rather play Nairn and give the fans a good day out to somewhere unknown.
 “I think Forfar will beat Nairn though which I wouldn’t want as the last thing we need is another game on an Astroturf pitch." 

"Somewhere unknown", as you can imagine the fans are not happy with that comment. Perhaps we are considered unknown because the central belt media show little interest in  the achievements of the Highland League. On Satruday in Forfar, the crowd (swelled by about 200 Nairn fans) was a paltry 541, when you consider the North Cup Final at Grant Street recently and 1,400 paying customers through the door you get an idea of the dynamic of the Highland League and its potential. Some tiers of Scottish Football may be on its knees but look at the Highland League table just now, what a fantastic product - Anyone of about eight teams is still in with a chance of winning the league. 

It's all academic of course, Nairn have to beat Forfar on Saturday to get a crack at Ayr United and give them a full-on taste of the "unknown" but the comments from the Ayr manager are yet another incentive for the players and supporters to go to Station Park with renewed fire in their hearts to keep this fantastic Scottish Cup adventure alive. The Wee County are still living the dream and there is at least another ninety minutes to come. If you've never been to a Nairn game before make an exception this Saturday and come up to Station Park, get behind the club, get behind the town, get behind the "unknown" - you never know you might just like it.