Fraserburgh captain Willie West is determined to keep playing as he looks to reach another milestone.
If the Broch skipper features in tonight’s Morrison (Motors) Turriff Aberdeenshire Shield first round tie against Aberdeen at Pittodrie (7.30pm kick-off), it will be his 650th appearance for the club.
Only Jimmy Young (680) and Billy Gordon (721) have made more appearances for the Buchan outfit than West, who is also the fifth-highest scorer in Broch history with 166 goals.
The 35-year-old, who has won 13 trophies with Fraserburgh since his debut in November 2003, said: “I still feel like I’m just starting out.
“It’s something I am proud of, but it’s far more important for the team to put in a good performance.
“If I feature then I want to give a good account of myself as well. It’s all well and good talking about 650 appearances, but you don’t want to play poorly.
“For me it’s always just about trying to show I can still contribute to the team and the club.
“To make my 650th appearance at Pittodrie would be special, but if it isn’t in this game, it might be at Bellslea on Saturday, which would be great as well.
“I suppose I would like to try to catch Jimmy Young and Billy Gordon.
“If I still feel I’m able to contribute, the management team still feel I’m contributing and if I’m still enjoying it, then I’ll keep going.
“I just keep going week to week and see where that takes me.
“If I had to stop tomorrow, I would be quite content – but I want to keep playing as long as I can and see where it goes.”
Holders need to bounce back
Fraserburgh come into this evening’s fixture following losses to Formartine United and Huntly in the Breedon Highland League.
West says the Broch, who are Aberdeenshire Shield holders, will need an improved display against an Aberdeen side that could feature a number of first-team players.
The versatile player, who primarily lines up in defence now, added: “The last two performances and results haven’t been good enough, it’s been hard to take.
“We need to react and recover. You want to win every game and as holders we don’t want to lose our grip on the Shield.
“But we know it’s going to be really tough.
“We’ll need to cut out the mistakes we’ve been making because a team of Aberdeen’s quality will punish us.
“When I was younger I was a season ticket holder at Aberdeen with my dad, my brothers and my uncle.
“I would say Aberdeen are my Scottish Premiership team, and it’s quite special to play Aberdeen in a competitive fixture.”
In the other Aberdeenshire Shield first round tie, North Region Junior Premier League leaders Hermes take on former Junior foes Banks o’ Dee at Lochside Park.
Highland League side Dee are looking to bounce back after three games without a win.
Meanwhile, the second round draw will take place at Pittodrie tonight with Buckie Thistle, Huntly, Keith and Turriff United already in the hat having received byes.
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