Family affair for Wick Groats assistant boss Stewart Ross in Stannergill Cup first round win over Watten
Wick Groats assistant manager Stewart Ross wasn’t expecting to feature in last night’s Stannergill Cup tie against Watten — but found himself pressed into action to boost numbers amidst a hectic weekly schedule.
The evening soon turned into a family affair for the ex-Scorries defender though, joined by his 14-year-old son Max for what turned out to be a 4-0 win for his side.
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“When you’re trying to fight on all fronts and compete in all trophies, you’ve always got games that are coming thick and fast,” said Ross.
“It’s a test for the whole squad even at this early stage of the season. We’ve got to make sure that we have a mixture of people getting minutes, getting rest.
“We have some coming back from long-term injuries and layoffs, so it can be a bit of a juggling act.”
The 43-year-old said the decision to turn out for 90 minutes was taken to give others in the squad a rest before their crunch league tie with Pentland United on Wednesday.
“My involvement wasn’t really planned. The idea was just to come in and allow others some rest ahead of the important league game later this week,” he adds.
“Myself and Max having that moment kind of happened organically.
“It just so happened that Max had been training well, along with a couple others, and it was a good opportunity to get them involved tonight.
“It turned into quite a special game. Getting the chance to be on the same pitch as your son, that’s quite cool.
“I don’t think he thinks it’s very cool, but I’m sure when he looks back in future years, he won’t find it quite so ‘cringy’!
“I think we worked it out there’s 28 years between us. Me at 43 and Max turning 15 next week.”
Max was joined by fellow East End and Caithness United graduates and S3 pupils Alex Traill and Morgan Timbrell.
The trio were drafted in for the fixture to enjoy a small taste of amateur game, after impressing during training sessions.
Ross added: “Its very much a case of introducing them carefully into the adult game. They are well aware of the fact there will be games where they won't get on.
“But at the same time we won't be holding them back. If you’re good enough, you are old enough.
“I myself debuted at 15, same as these boys. It's a big step playing adult football.
“But we have a great mix of youth and vast experience that these youngsters, who are the future of the club, will learn and develop from watching and playing with.”
Groats took the lead when Conor Farquhar broke down the left hand side on the overlap before delivering a low ball for Korbyn Cameron to direct the ball into the far corner.
The visitors had managed to contain the favoured hosts for a good while but couldn’t prevent a left footed strike from Michael Steven from extending their lead, the Groats’ midfield man having been thwarted on a couple of occasions prior.
Alan Mathieson was next to add to the tally, finishing well after a clever team move involving Alfie Miller, Max Ross, Ben Sinclair and Grant Aitkenhead.
The goal was a pleasing reward for Mathieson who finds the net for the first time since recovering from a knee operation.
Steven rounded off the scoring with his second of the game and Groats’ fourth – and it was with an assist from Max Ross, who set the experienced midfielder up to send a long range chip over Mackenzie Beaton in the Watten goal.
“Watten came with a plan from the off to sit in as much as possible and look to catch us on the break,” Ross added.
“They maybe hoped to take advantage of the fact that I was playing, thinking we might have been a bit slower at the back!
“At 1-0 they were always in the game, and they tried to make it difficult, but we just stayed patient and kept the ball moving and eventually our patience paid off.”
