It’s a new month and we now embark upon a run of vital Premier Division matches. First up is the second match in a Portland Park triple-header with Drumchapel United again the visitors, this time for our 19th WOSFL Premier Division match of the season.
⚽️ Troon F.C. versus Drumchapel United ⚽️
Saturday 7th March 2026
WOSFL Premier Division
Portland Park, Troon
Kick-off 2pm
After an impeccable January, February was a bit of a disappointment by comparison. But Saturday’s match (before the abandonment) was a step forward again, so plenty to be optimistic about as we head into a busy March and some important matches. Starting with the second of three home matches back-to-back against form team Drumchapel United.
Last weekend’s match was obviously abandoned with Troon leading 2-1, this weekend is our return league match and the abandoned Cup Quarter-Final has now been rescheduled for Wednesday 11th March, so we’ll be fed up of playing each other by this time next week!
Drumchapel United had an excellent first season in the Premier Division last term after being crowned the First Division Champions in 2023-24, and they finished 6th in one of the most competitive Premier Divisions for years. Not only that, they also narrowly lost out at the two-legged semi-final stage of the Scottish Junior Cup against Tranent as well as respectable runs in both the South Challenge Cup & West of Scotland Cup.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Saturday’s match…
Firstly, far better news regarding Jack Barr’s injury than we all feared at the time last Saturday. A serious neck injury was the concern at the time, fortunately that didn’t materialise and hopefully we’ll see him back in a Troon jersey before long.
Couple of players returning to the squad this weekend, recent signing Lewis Allan has shaken off a knock and young Clayton Hood returned for the Development Team last Friday, so he comes back into contention. Given the stage of the season we are now entering, it’s a big bonus seeing the squad returning & giving the Manager selection options.
Most serious concern just now appears to be defender Jack Sherrie, who was helped from the pitch at Kilwinning with a worrying looking knee injury. He will be assessed once the swelling goes down & then his rehab will be planned from there with Darrell, but it is feared his recovery will be more long-term rather than short. Fellow defender Luke Watt is also out injured again.
Evan Ferguson is working his way back to fitness, and Scott McLean is still continuing his rehab from knee reconstructive surgery.
Horrible scenes last weekend, but ultimately ended far better than we all feared at the time. Young Jack certainly took a sore one, but the fears at the time of everyone involved was that he’d badly hurt his neck, thankfully that didn’t materialise but it was certainly bad enough for him. Well done to Darrell for his work in an emergency situation, and we look forward to getting Jack back involved before too long.
We’ve got the tough task of a double header against Drumchapel again now (or is that a triple header?) and that is never easy, no matter the competition or the opposition. We were good in the first half on Saturday, could have arguably been further ahead at half-time, but we saw how good a side they are in the second half so we know we have to be right on our game to get the result we want.
We saw the Drumchapel Manager departed the club during the week, and you just never know how that affects a side. They could be deflated at the news, or they could be even more determined to get the result for him, so we have to be prepared for anything. Quite the record Adam Hopes had at Drumchapel, being involved right back to their amateur days, so he’ll be a very tough act to follow that’s for sure.
I know we had a couple of disappointing results in February against Cumnock and Arthurlie, but when you see the Burgh & Talbot results during the week, hopefully everyone realises that there are a fair few more bumps in the road coming this season for everyone. It’s such a competitive league, no results should be a surprise and anyone can be confident in picking up points anywhere. Beith and Hurlford certainly showed that this week, and both were quite deserved according to Richard, but those results certainly open it up a little at the top of the table. Interesting couple of months ahead.
Anyway, one game at a time and the focus is firmly on Saturday’s league match. Let’s get a big support in at Portland Park!
Jimmy Kirkwood (Manager)
| Full Name | Drumchapel United Football Club |
| Nickname(s) | The Drum |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Ground | The Donald Dewar Centre, Drumchapel |
| Capacity | 1,000 |
| Club Secretary | William Chisholm |
| Co-Managers | John Black & Adam Hopes |
| Captain | David Hopkirk |
| 2024-25 | WOSFL Premier Division, 6th from 16 |
⚽️️ BRADLEY RODDEN ⚽️
The signing of the 29 year old was a real coup last summer, a player of real SPFL pedigree and ability.
Bradley left Drumchapel to begin his senior career with Alloa Athletic before a move to Stenhousemuir in 2024. After a season at Ochilview he moved on to Bonnyrigg Rose for a season, before he headed to Station Park & Forfar Athletic. He returned to the Donald Dewar in July.
Fast, tricky & with a real eye for a goal, Rodden is certainly one to watch out for.
⚽️️ RUARIDH McINTYRE ⚽️
The 25 year old is a bit of an unsung hero at the Drum, a regular starter who is a rock at the back beside Martin McNiff.
Winner of Young Player of the Year in his breakthrough season for the Drum in 2023-24 as they lifted the WOSFL 1st Division trophy, he has been a virtual ever present since & a consistent performer.
Began his career in the Rangers youth academy before a spell with Partick Thistle then Cumnock, he is now in his fourth season at the club.
© Thanks to our club photographer Graeme McKenzie for his photos – fantastic, as always!
Troon F.C.
| LOST | LOST | WON | WON | WON |
| 0-1 | 3-0 | 0-3 | 3-4 | 2-1 |
| Cumnock (H) | Arthurlie (A) | Kilwinning (A) | Shotts (A) | Renfrew (H) |
| Sat 21st February | Sat 7th February | Fri 30th January | Sat 24th January | Sat 17th January |
| WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Premier |
Drumchapel United
| LOST | WON | WON | WON | WON |
| 4-2 | 4-0 | 1-3 | 2-1 | 0-3 |
| Kilwinning (A) | EK Thistle (H) | Glenafton (A) | Renfrew (H) | Petershill (A) |
| Sat 21st February | Sat 14th February | Sat 7th February | Sat 31st January | Sat 24th January |
| WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Cup R4 | WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Premier | WOSFL Cup R3 |
If you can’t make it along to the game , you can keep up to date with all the latest info via the club’s social media channels:
Live updates from the official Troon F.C. Twitter feed (nope, still not calling it X yet)
- Team news pre-match
- Goal alerts
- News flashes
- Real time alerts
Make sure you follow our NEW feed!
Match news via the official Troon F.C. Facebook page
- Team news pre-match
- Half-time score & update
- Full time results
All news on the club FIRST via the official Troon F.C. WhatsApp Supporter’s Group chat
- Vote for your Man of the Match
- Info on functions & events
- Book your seat on away buses
- Discuss the match with fellow Troon fans!
It was two wins out of two for the WOSFL Premier Division new boys last season, keeping two clean sheets into the bargain.
AWAY MATCH
| Saturday 7th September 2024 | Match Centre |
| DRUMCHAPEL UNITED | LOST | Donald Dewar Centre |
| TROON FOOTBALL CLUB | 2-0 | WOSFL Premier |
The first encounter of 2024-25 was an entertaining match in Troon’s first ever visit to the Glasgow Club Donald Dewar.
Troon had a strong start to the match and should have been ahead at half-time, misses that they came to rue as David Hopkirk gave their hosts the lead on the 58th minute with a trademark superb goal. As Troon pressed and threw the kitchen sink at the Drum, defender Ruaridh McIntyre sealed the 3 points for the First Division Champions late on.
HOME MATCH
| Saturday 15th March 2025 | Match Centre |
| TROON FOOTBALL CLUB | LOST | Portland Park |
| DRUMCHAPEL UNITED | 0-3 | WOSFL Premier |
The return match in March was to be an even better performance from the Drum, as they blew their hosts away with a goalscoring spree.
That man David Hopkirk gave the visitors an early lead with a smart finish, before a battle ground out and the first half was seen out. The Drum came out determined after the interval though, and a quickfire double from Kevin Nicoll & Munir Idris secured the 3 points thanks to two assists from Argyll McCoist in front of his famous father.ough Kyle Gilroy, before Dykes got on the scoresheet again to restore parity. Both sides spurned good chances to secure the 3 points, before both had to settle for a hard-earned point apiece.
(before this week’s matches)
| REFEREE: | ||
| Kieran O’Reilly | ||
| Assistant Referee 1: | Assistant Referee 2: | |
| Cal Cunningham | Euan Taylor |
| Referee Observer: | To be appointed |
Tickets are available at the cash turnstiles at Portland Park:
| Adult: | £10.00 |
| Concession: | £5.00 |
| Under-16: | FREE |
Season Tickets are valid for this match.
You can find out all about the match itself by visiting the match centre both before and after the game, with the team line-ups, scorers & bookings on the specific match page for the fixture.
To visit the match centre, CLICK HERE.
The social club at Portland Park will be open early from 12pm ahead of the 2pm kick-off, and supporters of both clubs are very welcome.
And, indeed, neutrals!
📺 Come early & enjoy the football on the big screen! 📺
| ⏰ 12.15pm | Mansfield v Arsenal | (FA Cup 5th Round) ⚽️ |
| ⏰ 5.45pm | Wrexham v Chelsea | (FA Cup 5th Round) ⚽️ |
The bar will close following the conclusion of the 5.45pm match.
Scott will be selling tickets for our half-time draw at the gate before kick-off, and inside the ground throughout the first half for just 50p a ticket.
Our local resident food truck, SCRAN have our hungry supporters covered with their own take on “Football Food” – highly recommended!
They will be open all day on Saturday & will be open til late, selling a variety of hot food & drinks as well as cold drinks.
If you’ve never been to SCRAN before, you really need to watch Blair McNally’s YouTube video after his visit to Portland Park…and SCRAN!
⚽️ Troon F.C. Development Team versus Darvel ⚽️
Friday 6th March 2026
WOSFDL Conference E
QMA Sports Campus, Ayr
Kick-off 7.30pm
Head along & support the Troon stars of tomorrow!
⚽️ Troon F.C. versus Drumchapel United ⚽️
Wednesday 11th March 2026
Strathclyde Demolition West of Scotland Cup Quarter-Final
Portland Park, Troon
Kick-off 7.30pm