Mark Macadie has gone from watching Wick Academy as a supporter to bidding to help them make history.
The Scorries will attempt to reach the fourth round of the Scottish Cup for the first time when they take on Falkirk at Harmsworth Park this afternoon.
Macadie, 19, watched Wick regularly growing up with older brother Richard, 35, having been a mainstay in the Academy side since the mid-2000s.
Now the brothers play together, and Mark said: “I’ve grown up watching all the senior players play for Wick and it’s good to play with all of them.
“I used to watch Wick all the time. In the Scottish Cu,p we’ve had some good draws over the years, although a lot of them were away from home.
“It’s good to be able to play with Richard while he’s still got a few years left.
“He’s got a lot of experience and he’s good at trying to help us by using that experience.
“I suppose Richard did inspire me because that was why I started going to watch Wick, because he was playing.”
Wick are underdogs to get past full-time Falkirk, but Macadie is hopeful the Caithness outfit can cause a shock against their League One opponents.
Academy have exited the Scottish Cup at this stage three times previously, but a place in the hat alongside Scotland’s biggest clubs awaits if they can triumph against the Bairns.
Macadie added: “You’ve got to fancy your chances because you never know what can happen in the Scottish Cup.
“It’s good that we’re playing them at home because there’s not really another ground like Harmsworth Park.
⚫️⚪️ @WickAcademyFC v @FalkirkFC might not be on TV (📺🤔), but the Scorries still have the chance to make @ScottishCup history…
Today's #HighlandLeagueWeekly also covers @FraserburghFC and @FormartineUtd's cup ties, plus all the @scottishhfl games.https://t.co/SRfeU5Ll6F pic.twitter.com/bq2Mt9M6Wx
— Highland League Weekly (@HighlandLW) November 25, 2022
“Hopefully we can use that to our advantage and, with all the local fans turning out, hopefully we can make it difficult for Falkirk.
“If we could get through it would be a massive achievement for the club.
“There are only three Highland League clubs left in the cup and we’d love to get through.”
Manson on a mission
Meanwhile, Wick player-manager Gary Manson is optimistic about their chances of making it a day to remember.
He said: “We’re not there to make up the numbers and have a good day out – we’re there to win.
“I’ve been drilling into the boys that, while we’re up against a good team, we’re a good team on our day as well.
“We’ve got quite a clear gameplan that we’re going to try to pull off.
“If we do pull it off, we’re in with a great chance of winning the game.
“We’re underdogs and we’ll need things to fall for us – we’ll also need to play out of our skin and for Falkirk to have a bad day.”
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