Kirkintilloch Rob Roy Match Preview

It’s the big one! Troon look forward to the first Cup Quarter-Final at Portland Park in years, as we welcome our old friends from Kirkintilloch Rob Roy to the Ayrshire seaside as we get ready for battle.

⚽️ Troon F.C. versus Kirkintilloch Rob Roy⚽️
Saturday 2nd March 2024
South Region Challenge Cup Quarter-Final
Portland Park, Troon
Kick-off 2pm

Form has improved remarkably since the festive break, and our tails are up a little with some good results since the turn of the year. It’s a Cup match this though, so form may go out of the window a little, but even still the Troon camp have reasons for optimism.

Yet again, a lot of the chat around Kirkintilloch Rob Roy concerns their stadium issue, which still rumbles on unresolved (despite the stadium now being built) ten years after departing Adamslie Park. But on the pitch, the challenge for the Roy is clear; stay in the Premier League. The naysayers have regularly tipped them for relegation during Stewart Maxwell’s time in charge, same for former Queens Park winger Kevin McGoldrick, and now Danny Ferry is looking to foster the same kind of spirit which has proved them wrong so many times over the years.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Saturday’s match…

There’s a real feelgood atmosphere around the squad just now, with most of our missing players returning to training after injury and a number of our squad committing their future to the club with extended contracts.

Sam McCloskey returns to the squad after missing last weekend for a wedding, but Dale Moore is suspended after his booking in the last round against Caledonian Braves and Rabin Omar is cup-tied after featuring for Broomhill earlier in their South Challenge Cup campaign.

Chris Millar (hamstring) and Nicky Docherty (knee) are the only ones now missing through injury.

Cup Quarter-Final weekend, it’s been too long since we’ve been able to say those words around Portland way!

We’ve lifted the Ayrshire Cup, as well as been to the finals of both the West of Scotland Cup & the Ardagh Cup in my time here, so it’s great to be back in the hunt for silverware. It’s been a great run this season, one we’ve enjoyed, and this is certainly an occasion to savour. We’ve had some great clashes with Rob Roy home & away over the years, and both clubs have a lot of respect for each other. They’ll certainly feel they have the edge over us in recent encounters, but it’s up to us to stand up to that & impart ourselves on proceedings.

I’ve said repeatedly this season, the support we have enjoyed of late has been terrific. Our fans have come out in numbers to follow the boys, and we can only thank you all for that. THIS is our Cup Final just now though, so we ask you once again – let’s get out in our droves, make Portland as noisy as we possibly can & let’s see if we can give the boys one more push. Be the difference.

Fortress Portland!

Jimmy Kirkwood (Manager)

Full Name	Kirkintilloch Rob Roy Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Rabs or The Roy
Founded	1878
Ground	Guy’s Meadow, Cumbernauld
Capacity	2,500
Chairman	Neil Anderson
Manager	Danny Ferry
Captain	Scott Walker
2022-23	WOSFL Premier Division, 12th from 16

⚽️️ KIAN GILDAY ⚽️

The 22 year old left-back has been one of the standout performers in the Roy side in recent campaigns, with some sterling efforts from the left flank.

Now in his fourth season at Guy’s Meadow, Kian has added goals to his game this term & will be one to watch for the future.

⚽️️ SCOTT WALKER ⚽️

The 33 year old has been a fixture on the right hand side of the Rabs defence for the last eight seasons, most of which has seen him lead the side as Club Captain. He is now approaching 200 games in the red & black since joining in 2016.

A constant threat down the right flank with his boundless energy, and a powerhouse of the team with his leadership qualities, Scott is always a stand-out in previous encounters.

⚽️️ ZANDER MURRAY ⚽️

The 32 year old forward is a recent addition to the Rob Roy ranks, and he brings experience and goals to the red & blacks.

Began his career in the youth ranks of Airdrie & Motherwell, Zander hit headlines with his scoring exploits in a 4 year spell with Lowland League side Gala Fairydean before a move to SPFL Bonnyrigg Rose.

© Thanks to our club photographer Graeme McKenzie for his photos – fantastic, as always!

Troon F.C.

LOST	DREW	WON	WON	DREW
0-2	3-3	3-2	3-0	2-2
Benburb (H)	Gartcairn (A)	Beith (H)	Caledonian Braves (H)	Cumnock (H)
Sat 24th February	Sat 17th February	Sat 10th February	Sat 3rd February	Sat 13th January
WOSFL Premier	WOSFL Premier	WOSFL Premier	South Challenge Cup	WOSFL Premier

Kirkintilloch Rob Roy

LOST	LOST	WON	WON	DREW
0-3	0-3	4-1	1-2	1-1
Auchinleck Talbot (H)	Beith (H)	Pollok (H)	Arthurlie (A)	Cumnock (A)
Sat 24th February	Sat 17th February	Sat 3rd February	Sat 27th January	Sat 6th January
WOSFL Cup (Round 4)	WOSFL Premier	South Challenge Cup	WOSFL Premier	WOSFL Premier

Troon F.C.

Caledonian Braves (H)	Thornton Hibs (H)	Abbey Vale (H)	Craigmark (H)
3-0	3-2	3-0	1-1 (Pens 8-7)
Sat 3rd February	Sat 18th November	Sat 14th October	Sat 16th September
5th Round	4th Round	3rd Round	2nd Round

Kirkintilloch Rob Roy

Pollok (H)	Beith (A)	Hurlford United (A)	Easterhouse (A)
4-1	2-3	0-1	0-3
Sat 3rd February	Sat 18th November	Sat 14th October	Sat 16th September
5th Round	4th Round	3rd Round	2nd Round

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 (I’m not calling it X yet):

Team news pre-match
Goal alerts
News flashes
Real time alerts

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 channel

Team news pre-match
Half-time score & update
Full time results
Info on functions & events
Book your seat on away buses

It was 6 points out of 6 for the Rabs last term, in two very exciting encounters between the two teams.

In an entertaining first encounter of last season at Guy’s Meadow, a really hard-fought encounter saw goals from Connor Hughes & Jamie Barclay seal the home win, and two controversial red cards to Mark Morrison & Josh Black sent Troon heading home deflated.

The return match in February was yet another close encounter, but again the same result. It was a strong performance from the Seasiders, but their profligacy was punished again with two late goals from Del McNab & Adam Martin.

(before this week’s matches)

	REFEREE:
	Euan Birch
Assistant Referee 1:		Assistant Referee 2:
Chris Malone		Stephen Clyne

Referee Observer:

To be appointed

For travelling supporters, have a look at our “How to get to Portland Park” page for directions and helpful tips:

How to get to Portland Park

Tickets are available at the turnstiles at Portland Park:

Adult:	£8.00
Concession:	£4.00
Under-16:	FREE

Season Tickets are NOT valid for this game.

A detailed match report will be posted in the match centre 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! 📺

⏰ 12.30pm	Huddersfield v Leeds United	(EFL Championship) ⚽️
⏰ 5.30pm	Luton Town v Aston Villa	(FA Premier League) ⚽️

The bar will close following the 5.30pm televised 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 from 10am on Saturday & will be open right through the match til the evening, selling a variety of hot food & drinks as well as cold drinks.