WE WIN TOGETHER
Following the disappointment of last season’s relegation, the board met to discuss our focus as we look to return to the Championship as quickly as possible. It was unanimously agreed that we need everyone involved with the club to pull in the same direction – board, staff, players, sponsors, and supporters. In this first monthly update we look at some of the goings-on at the club over the close season.

A NEW ERA
Over the close season we said goodbye to a number of players who had reached the end of their contracts, and also to our management team of Aaron Taylor-Sinclair and David Hutton. Both Aaron and David served the club with distinction over their tenures, and they departed with our best wishes for the future.

John Rankin was identified as our number one target for the head coach position, and we were able to make the appointment fairly quickly. John immediately showed the tremendous work ethic he will bring to the club as he began the arduous process of assembling a squad and backroom team. That process is still ongoing, and as always we will bring news of new arrivals as soon as the appropriate paperwork is lodged. Those in attendance at Saturday’s friendly draw with Elgin City will have seen 11 trialists taking part as the coaching staff continue to assess a number of players – this process continues this week with two closed-door friendlies coming up before Saturday’s trip to Ayr.

We also made the difficult decision to discontinue our academy set-up at the end of the season. With Cade Melrose, the Williams twins, Divine Iserhienrhien, Euan Hamilton and Mason Chisholm all making the step up to the first team squad in recent times, it was not a decision that we took lightly – but with the setup facing a number of challenges we reached the conclusion that it would be wiser to focus on the first-team with the aim of returning to the Championship. As always, the future of the club’s youth development is a topic that will be under regular discussion.

We are finalising a number of other personnel moves behind the scenes, details of which will be included in next month’s update.

SPONSORS RETURN
On the commercial front, we were delighted with the commitment shown by our kit sponsors Airdrie Mechanical Services, Stewart Ventilation Services, and Advance Construction Scotland as they agreed to adorn our kits once more for the upcoming season. Of course, pride of place goes to main club sponsor Holemasters, who have continued their support for a fantastic 11th season. We’re sure you’ll all be in agreement that all of our sponsors logos look great on our lovely new Puma kits!

We would also like to thank Cairnhill Structures, who are sponsoring our upcoming golf day at Airdrie Golf Club. Limited spaces remain for the event, so if you’re interested in registering a team please get in touch soon – full details are available on the club website.

You may have noticed a fresh new look for our dugouts on Saturday – our thanks go to our friends at 3M Contracts for their support with the sponsorship.

As always, if you know any individual or company who would be interested in a sponsorship package with the club, you can contact commercial director Gordon Watson to get the ball rolling!

THE TREATMENT ROOM
The medical department reported on a few lingering cases from the end of last season. Cole McKinnon unfortunately suffered an ankle ligament injury and is likely to face a number of weeks on the sidelines. Dylan MacDonald’s return to light training is imminent after recovering from an injury sustained in the final league fixture of last season, while Adam Devine is looking at a similar timeframe after suffering a groin strain. Mason Chisholm is being monitored following a hip knock, but is not expected to be out for a significant period.

AND FINALLY…
There are plenty of Scotland diehards behind the scenes at the Albert Bartlett, and staff members Bryan Prunty, Iain Allison, Des Walker, Bobby MacDonald and Andrew Duffy all made trips to the USA to join the Tartan Army at the World Cup. We’re sure that DTV commentator Andrew enjoyed cheering on the Scots at their 1-0 win over Haiti in Boston, but probably not as much as he enjoyed being recognised on the flight home! “Here, are you that guy fae DiamondsTV?”