THE recent Scottish Cup tie between Gala Fairydean Rovers and Linlithgow Rose marked an exciting new chapter in the ongoing process of growing the community side of the Netherdale club.

Both teams were led out by 22 players from the club’s Junior section who recently changed their name from Galadean Juniors to Gala Fairydean Rovers Juniors bringing them officially under the umbrella of the main club.

Allied to youth, girls and walking football, Gala Fairydean Rovers now have over 300 players at the club making them one of the biggest sporting organisations in the Scottish Borders.

Galadean Junior Football Club were formed in 2007 at a time when there was no organised children’s football in the town of Galashiels.

Graeme McIver, secretary of Gala Fairydean Rovers has also been secretary of the Junior Club since its formation. He said: “I think we started off with seven boys playing football in the Public Park.

"The club was established by Willie and Grace Simpson whose hard work and vision laid the foundations for the club to go onto great success.

"Through the brilliant work of people like the Simpson’s, Robert Headspeath, Robert Fox, Kevin Temple and Jane Greene we are now a an SFA Quality Mark club, with around 150 children at every primary school age-group who are part of an established player pathway that can take young footballers all the way through the junior and youth ranks up to the Lowland League team and hopefully beyond.

“The difficult decision to change the club’s name was taken at the Galadean AGM last year.

"The unanimous opinion was that becoming part of the main club allows us to strengthen our ability to provide quality training and participation for all youngsters, whatever their level of ability. Whilst the name will change, everyone involved with the club is fully committed to ensuring we maintain the high standards we have set since the formation of the club in 2007 to provide an environment in which players of all ages can enjoy their football. “

“It also completes the process of unifying all of the different strands of football in the town and bringing them under a single entity for the benefit of the community and football in the town as a whole.”