“There’s a great squad capable of winning so much more” - Graeme Stewart says he leaves Buckie Thistle on a high note as Highland League champions as he hands over the managerial reins to Lewis MacKinnon
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Departing Buckie Thistle manager Graeme Stewart will miss football over the coming months, but wouldn’t rule out a return to the sport in the future.
Stewart’s resignation after steering Jags to the Highland league title paved the way for his assistant Lewis MacKinnon to be appointed as his successor this week.
The former Victoria Park boss looked back fondly on almost ten years at the helm, and feels the club is in good shape for MacKinnon to take over.
He admitted if Buckie hadn’t won the title last season, he would have stayed on in his pursuit of a landmark trophy success to end his time at the club on a high.
“It was always going to be a difficult decision when I left Buckie or when the club wanted me to leave,” he said. “I have managed them for ten years and played for six or seven years for the club before that.
“Having the success we did, it was always going to be difficult.
“But the way I managed, I am all in and the amount of effort, time, stress and commitment is quite a lot, I never appreciated how much that was until I stopped playing.
“So I felt that the next time I had an opportunity to leave with my head held high, I would probably take it. If we never won the league, I would have been there next season as I was determined to go out winning something for this club because they deserve it.”
Stewart said he has experienced far more highs than lows in his decade in the Jags’ hotseat.
Leading his team to Celtic Park for January’s Scottish Cup tie was one of the greatest moments, alongside two title successes in 2017 and 2024.
But he also recalled how his stint as manager could have ended almost before it started when Buckie were crushed 10-3 at Formartine United in December 2015.
“Garry (president Farquhar) and the board would have been within their rights to sack me after that. I wouldn’t have been able to argue with that.
“That was in my second season and you learn all the time, you gain more managerial experience and I look back over ten years and wonder how I got the job in the first place!
“I feel I was quite good at picking it up and after a few years I felt established.
“The lows would include that heavy defeat at Formartine, losing cup finals and the hardest one against Brechin last season in the title decider.
“That’s the worst I’ve ever felt after a game, I felt that for a couple of weeks.
“But they were dwarfed by most of the highs. We won the league twice, we won the (Aberdeenshire) cup against Cove when we were 2-0 down and ended up down to nine men and won on pens. That’s one of the best I’ve felt straight after a game.
“It’s been 95 percent enjoyable, a learning experience and it will be difficult now because I’m going to miss it.”
Stewart feels former assistant MacKinnon and the rest of his backroom team are best placed to push the club towards more honours.
“Guys like Lewis, Hamish Munro, Dessie Strong and Davie Young are four out-and-out Buckie people and you can’t get enough of them. When you do get people in with that kind of commitment, it’s great news for the club.
“I wanted to leave them in a good state and I have done that. There’s a great squad capable of winning so much more and hopefully they can build on that.
“I love football, I’ve done it since I was five years old and never been without a club since then. So it feels kind of strange and I’m not going to lie, I don't like that feeling.
“But I genuinely felt that it was time. I had to walk away sometime and there was never going to be a time like this so I feel it was the right time for everyone involved.
“Now I will recharge the batteries and I will wait and see if any opportunities come up and if they do, I will assess them. I will know myself, if I’m not interested I won’t take them as I won’t go into anything half-hearted but if there’s something that really interests me and I can get my teeth into it, I will have a look at it.
“I feel I have a lot to offer with the experience I have so I think I would like to get back in at some point but what club or role, I have no idea.”
