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First pre-season closed door friendly for Elgin City and Lossiemouth at Borough Briggs


By Craig Christie

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ELGIN City will play their first game in six months when they take on Highland League neighbours Lossiemouth in a closed door friendly today (Saturday).

Elgin City manager Gavin Price. Picture: Daniel Forsyth..
Elgin City manager Gavin Price. Picture: Daniel Forsyth..

City manager Gavin Price said he was eager to take his players into a match situation at the first available opportunity when they had been out of action for so long due to the coronavirus lockdown.

The Scottish Government gave the go-ahead for adult contact football to resume on September 12 and Borough Briggs will have all the Covid-19 safety requirements in place to host a match on the first day.

Price, who took his squad through their first full squad training session last weekend cast his mind back to his own playing days with Den Haag in the Netherlands for an example of getting game time in early.

Read more: Pictures from Elgin City's return to training

“There will be rustiness but the fitness is good,” he said.

“We have two training sessions this week and I think that will be enough to get us ready for our first game.

“I’m used to that from playing in Holland when you are always back into matches almost straight away and I don’t think it does anybody any harm.

“Because of the squad we have and the amount of players here, I want to make sure that they all get enough game time.”

With this in mind, Price has added an extra friendly to his pre-season schedule. Elgin will now host Rothes on Tuesday night, Brora Rangers on the 19th and Caley Thistle on the 26th and visit Strathspey Thistle on the 22nd and Caley on October 1.

They are then off to Aberfeldy two days later to prepare for their first Betfred Cup match against Stirling Albion, who visit Elgin on October 10.

Price said: “I won’t take the south players up [for the Rothes game] but it allows us to make sure the whole squad is getting a bit more time on the park over these first two games.”

Price will play trialist striker Josh Peters, who he is believed to be keen to sign, and run the rule over former Aberdeen winger Sean Linden.

A loan deal could also be struck to bring Archie Macphee in from Formartine United for another season.

RAF serviceman Aiden Reddington is another on trial and is likely to get a run-out in the Rothes friendly. “He’s an ex-marine and certainly a strong, fit guy and looks like he’s got something on the football pitch as well,” said Price.

“We will see what happens over the next two or three weeks because there’s no mad rush.

“I may have a look at other loan signings, I know the kind of player I want and there’s a couple I’ve got my eye on.”


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