Fort William FC - 'Worst football club in Britain no more'

They train in the shadow of Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest mountain, but, until a few days ago they were feeling like the lowest of the low after being dubbed the worst football team in Britain.
Fort William FC celebrate their tremendous victory.Fort William FC celebrate their tremendous victory.
Fort William FC celebrate their tremendous victory.

/Now players at Fort William FC in Lochaber, are on the up after finally ending their unenviable record of losing 73 games without a win.

The part-time club which plays in the Scottish Highland League, defeated Nairn County 5-2 on Wednesday in a North of Scotland Cup clash.

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The club, managed by Russell MacMorran, last won four seasons ago when they defeated Strathspey Thistle 4-1.On their Twitter account, the club, which pays its players an average of £20 a week, wrote: “Unbelievable stuff. A great night at Claggan Park tonight. An unbelievable feeling. We would like to thank everyone who came along to Claggan Park tonight.

“And we would like to thank everyone online, around the world who have celebrated with us. Your support doesn’t go unnoticed.”

The winning line-up included six players on loan from Scottish Championship side Caledonian Thistle. Congratulations poured in from clubs and fans across the country and worldwide.

SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford, MP for Ross, Skye & Lochaber, wrote: “Heartfelt congratulations to @FortWilliamFC on an emphatic victory after a 840-day wait.

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Fort William end 73-game winless streak with emphatic victory

“A great story of perseverance and dedication. No matter how many times they got knocked down, they dusted themselves down and went again. Good luck moving forward!”

Jim Leishman, MBE, who has managed a number of Scottish football clubs including Inverness Thistle, said; “Enjoy it. Well done. And well done to all the committee as well for keeping it going.

“They have kept turning up to train and to play no matter what the outcome.“They’ve won a game but they’re not going to win a league, so my advice would be to get as many points as they can and try to win again.

Mr Leishman added: “In my time at Inverness Thistle went down and played in Fort William and they were a super bunch of people. One thing to remember about the Highlands is that it can be difficult to get players and that some people who were good footballers were more at ease with shinty.”

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The club’s win came one day after they featured in a BBC Scotland documentary ‘The Fort’ about their losing streak.Fort William’s next Highland League fixture is a home game against Inverurie Loco Works on Saturday. Neil Cooper, manager of Inverurie Loco Works FC, said his players would operate on a ‘business as usual’ basis.

“We’ve got to go up there and win. OK, they’ve had a bit of a bounce, and there’s been the documentary, but we’ll treat it the same as any other game.

“We treat every team in the league the same and never take anything for granted. We can just make sure we’re in the right place and do the right thing to win.”