Huntly’s Highland League visit to Rothes on Saturday will be a special occasion for the Strathbogie side’s goalkeeper Richard Bowman, who will celebrate his 40th birthday 24 hours before facing his former club.
Bowman, who is also Huntly’s goalkeeper coach, has recently returned to first-team football after a shoulder injury ended Neil Hastie’s playing career and is relishing his return to Mackessack Park.
Bowman said: “There are spells in football where you fall out of love with it, or you’re not getting a game. But I didn’t think at this stage in my life I’d still be playing Highland League football.
“Since I came back to Huntly as a coach, I’ve really enjoyed working alongside the manager Dave McGinlay and his coaching staff Jim Cheyne and Mark Gray. They have been superb and helpful with training regimes and there’s a good atmosphere at training.
“Unfortunately for Neil he had to retire, which was a big blow to the club. His former stand-in Shaun Barney has had a few sticky moments but he is a really good goalkeeper and I’m sure he will soon be back in the first team. He just needs to build up more confidence.
“On Saturday I go back to one of my old clubs, Rothes. They got to a North Cup final a couple of seasons ago so I was sorry when manager Graham McBeath left the club recently. He put in a lot of effort there and was a well-respected manager.”
Bowman made his Huntly debut in November 2004 and went on to collect a league winner’s medal at the end of that season. He also played for Buckie Thistle and is well placed to make a judgment on the quality of players in the league.
He added: “I’m not sure if the standard is better. When I was starting to play first-team football you were up against men. Now it is predominantly a young player’s game.”
Huntly manager McGinlay said: “Big Bow was our player of the season when we won the league. He was magnificent. It is up to him now as to how long he stays in the team.”