After ending Buckie Thistle’s seven-year wait for silverware Jack Murray is eager to lift a second trophy in the space of a few days with the Evening Express Aberdeenshire Cup.
Fresh from winning the Breedon Highland League title on Saturday, the Jags face Inverurie Locos tonight in the final of the Aberdeenshire Cup at Keith’s Kynoch Park.
Buckie have had their share of disappointments before tasting glory, having finished second in the league in the last two seasons, as well as losing in three cup finals in recent years.
Now that they have secured a trophy, defender Murray wants this campaign to mark the beginning of a successful Thistle era.
The 23-year-old said: “We’ve been near enough in the last few seasons, but the manager has been drumming into us that if we want to be considered a really good team, we have to start picking up silverware.
“Hopefully the league can be the first of many.
“You could never get sick of picking up medals. It’s what you play football for, so we want to try to do it again in the cup.”
Setbacks pushed Buckie on
Murray says previous near-misses have motivated Buckie this season, and he pinpointed last term’s final day loss in a league title-decider against Brechin City as a particular low point.
Murray, who has netted 26 goals this season, added: “The disappointment we’ve had has driven us on.
“I still don’t think I’ve got over last season, but we’ve made up for it this season.
“Inverurie have picked up a lot in recent months and they’ve got some really good players.
“We’re well aware of their threats, but hopefully we can get the job done and pick up another medal.”
Locos in search for silverware
Meanwhile, Greg Mitchell is desperate to lift a trophy as Inverurie Locos captain.
The Railwaymen haven’t collected any silverware since their triumph in the Morrison Motors (Turriff) Aberdeenshire Shield in December 2016.
Since then, Inverurie – who have never won the Aberdeenshire Cup – have been beaten in a Shield final and a GPH Builders Merchants Highland League Cup final.
Defender Mitchell, one of a couple of survivors from their last success, doesn’t want to be on the losing side again.
The 28-year-old said: “Mark Souter and I are the only guys in the squad to have won a trophy with Inverurie.
“It’s been too long and it’s been frustrating that we haven’t lifted silverware since.
“But we’ve got an opportunity to go and do it now. It will be tough, but if we carry out our gameplan and believe in each other, I think we can do it.
“Finals are only enjoyable if you go and win them.”
Inverurie skipper looks to end season in style
Winning the Shire Cup would make it a happy ending to a season that started in tumultuous fashion for Inverurie.
Having overhauled the squad, manager Andy Low was dismissed in September after picking up just one point from their first six league games.
Since Dean Donaldson was appointed in October, he has guided the club to 10th in the table and this final.
Skipper Mitchell reckons ending the campaign with a trophy could have a major impact on Locos’ future.
• 𝗡𝗘𝗫𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗖𝗛 •
Just one more sleep! 😴
⏭️ | @BuckieThistle | Neutral ground
🏆 | @EveningExpress Aberdeenshire Cup Final🚂🔴⚽⚫ pic.twitter.com/wwJCMN6KFe
— Inverurie Loco Works FC (@InverurieLocos) April 22, 2024
He added: “When you look at the season as a whole, we’ve improved since the manager and his staff came in.
“We want to keep on improving going forward.
“To end the season by winning something would mean everything to this group of players.
“Hopefully we can get ourselves that medal.
“We know it will be a really tough game. Buckie have won the league, which says it all about their quality.
“But we’ve got the belief we can get our hands on the trophy.”
Buckie Thistle and Inverurie Locos gaffers have their final say
Inverurie Locos boss Dean Donaldson believes victory in the Evening Express Aberdeenshire Cup final would demonstrate the character in his squad.
After a disappointing start to the season Locos have improved under Donaldson following his appointment as manager in October.
Donaldson said: “The boys have had to show a lot of character – at the start of the season they went through a bit of turmoil.
“But they’ve come back really well and have performed really well the last few months.
“It’s down to their hard work to get here and capping it off with a final win would be the icing on the cake.
“But Buckie aren’t going to hand it to them. The boys will have to go and take it.
“Ultimately, as a club, Inverurie needs to be competing.
“With the size of the club and how good the committee are off the field, we need to try to replicate that on the field.”
Stewart looks for second success
Meanwhile, Buckie manager Graeme Stewart says his squad have the energy and desire to win a memorable double.
Tonight’s game is the Jags’ seventh in 16 days after a gruelling run-in, which they overcame to become league champions at the weekend.
Stewart added: “You saw on Saturday we were running out of gas towards the end.
“We’ll try to ensure we’ve got a fresh team on the pitch – thankfully, we’ve got a strong squad which allows us to rotate.
“Our guys are very hungry and after the high of Saturday they’re focusing on trying to win this final.
“The guys have got great endurance and a great will to win.
“A win in this final would be a massive achievement.
“Now we’ve got a trophy, we’re hungry for more and we’ve got another chance.”
Inverurie are missing Paul Coutts, but welcome back Myles Gaffney and Thomas Reid, while Aberdeen loanee Tom Ritchie is cup-tied for Buckie.
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