Lothian amateurs aspire to be cream of the crop

Amateur football in Edinburgh and the Lothians has been on standby along with much of the country amid the snow of recent weeks, but players could have added incentive to return with extra vigour for a busy second half of the season.

Thousands of footballers will resume the campaign in earnest this week and next after a six-week-long shutdown imposed by extreme winter weather, and the cream of local talent could be playing for a place in a regional select side to be formed in the Spring.

The President of the Lothian and Edinburgh Amateur FA, Charles Gallacher, has indicated aims to organise a series of matches by the Summer, but regrets his association may struggle to accommodate training and matches for a representative squad among the long list of fixtures to be fulfilled between now and May.

"We're looking to form some kind of select squad and organise a series of games," said Mr Gallacher. "By March and the end of May, though, player availability will become difficult, as many teams will be playing two or more games per week."

LEAFA has a proud history in select matches at regional level and went down in history as the last-ever winners of the Baxter Trophy, a former national competition contested on an annual basis until ceasing 12 years ago. Wins over the West of Scotland, Dumfriesshire, Lanarkshire and Ayrshire saw the Lothians team crowned as Scottish champions towards the end of the last millennium.

Although any regional head-to-heads proposed this year would be run as single games, and not as a tournament, Mr Gallacher confirmed that the league's best players could turn out against rival regions in a multi-game campaign of representative fixtures. He explains, "The way we choose the Select team is to take the Player of the Year from each division, then nominations from team managers to give us a base squad.

"Then, the coaches make decisions and chop and change as they see fit. The primary thing is that the players they nominate are good enough.

"We would run a series of games to make sure everyone in the squad was given a chance to play."

League secretary David Ramage added, "From March to May, clubs could be playing three times a week, but we might think about a summer game."

Last season, Bo'ness Amateurs' coaching team of Dean McLean and David Lapsley led the LEAFA Select to an impressive performance against Scotland Amateurs. The Saughton Enclosure showpiece was staged to mark the centenary of the Scottish Amateur FA and proved a fitting tribute to the association.

The national side built a two-goal lead by half-time, but a rousing comeback by LEAFA, who pulled back a goal on 67 minutes, ensured a nailbiting last twenty minutes.

Seaforth Highlanders was one of the clubs represented by the Select side of 2009/10 through their captain Alan Bannon, the son of former Hearts great Eamonn Bannon and that season's reigning Premier Division 1 Player of the Year. Seaforth manager Stevie Cameron saw the presence of his skipper as an honour for the player and his club.

"Alan was in because he won the league player of the year so he was an automatic selection," says Mr Cameron. "Alan's quite an unassuming guy, he was laid back about it but obviously delighted. This being amateur football, though, he got the ribbing from the other players for being a favourite!" Cameron, who cast his vote in favour of Newcraighall Leith Vics centre back Kevin Smith, a player he describes as "always very consistent", says selection provides just reward for amateur football's top performers.

He says, "If you think of all the players there are at amateur level, to be selected for a squad of 16 is quite an achievement. If we were asked to suggest a player to go forward, I'd be more than willing to suggest a couple. It's good for the players to get recognition for their efforts."

Gunning for a place in the squad alongside the likes of Bannon will be top performers Johnno McManus, the Newtongrange Star ‘A' midfielder, Edinburgh South Vics attacker John-Ross Kerr, and Loanhead forward Ian Herriot.

Other players who have caught the eye this season include Uphall Station duo George McGregor and Derek Drummond, Redhall Star's attacking full-back Scott Kinnaird and goalkeeper Andy Leask, Tollcross Thistle's central defensive pairing of Alan Budge and Rees Allan, and centre forward Chris Gordon, of top-of-the-league Whitson Star.

Meanwhile, many LEAFA clubs' return to action this weekend has been stalled due to claims by the City of Edinburgh Council's Parks Department that council-run pitches require to be "re-measured and marked" before recommencement of Saturday and Sunday football. It is hoped that a full fixture card will be completed on the weekend of January 15-16. The last time a full set of local amateur games got underway was fully ten weeks ago, at the end of October.