Russell Dingwall knows how good his brother Tony can be and the player Elgin City have on their hands.
Reunited at Borough Briggs this season, the Dingwall brothers have both started to hit form at the right time as Elgin push for the League Two play-offs.
Russell, three years Tony’s junior, has been a regular at Elgin since joining at the start of last season.
Tony, however, has had a difficult few years. A cruciate ligament injury in December 2016 stopped his career in its tracks, with the midfielder making just eight further appearances for hometown club Ross County before his release in January 2019.
He then spent 18 months in League One with Raith Rovers before being freed last summer. A move to Elgin, where he had an emergency loan spell in 2017, paired him up with his brother again.
“We were together for years in youth football at County, so to play together in a first-team environment is good for us and good for the family,” Russell said.
“He was held back when he first signed (for Elgin) with a little injury, but he’s working hard to try get his fitness and sharpness back.
“It’s just about getting games because we know his quality is there. If he can stay fit, he’ll offer us so much. The ability is second-to-none and the creativity going forward is something we need in our team.
“We’ve got a lot of games coming up and everyone can’t play every single game. It’s another option to fill in that has plenty of quality, which can help us towards the end of the season.”
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Tony scored his first goal for the club in the 3-0 win at Annan last weekend, while Russell found the net in the midweek victory over Stranraer.
Gavin Price’s side have started to build some momentum towards the end of the season, with three wins on the bounce heading into today’s game against Cowdenbeath.
“Our first two games back were Edinburgh City and Ayr United. (They are) two strong teams and we know we weren’t at it,” said Dingwall.
“We drew against Stirling and it’s three wins on the bounce now. We’re getting stronger each game and hopefully we can kick on and get another win on Saturday.
“There’s not an easy game in this league. There’s games where we know we can win if we play our best – it’s up to us to perform.
“We’re not doing a lot of training at the moment with all the games. We’ve got some really good players in the team – it’s about getting things to click at the right time.
“We were flying before the break so it’s just about trying to find that form again.”
Elgin were in the play-off places last season when League Two was brought to a halt and missed out on a chance at promotion.
Behind this season’s runaway leaders Queen’s Park, the top half is tight. Elgin are two points clear of Edinburgh City and Stirling Albion, while Stranraer are only four points outside the play-off places.
“We’re sitting second with four games left (before the split), so it’s not a fluke we’re there any more. We’re up there because that’s where we deserve to be,” added Dingwall.
“I feel we’ve got plenty of players in our squad to come on and change things if boys are feeling leggy. It’s looking alright for us.”
