Football Focus Issue 83 | Page 22

Arniston Rangers FOLLOW US ONLINE TWITTER.COM/FOOTYFOCUSMAG Arniston Rangers FOOTBALL CLUB Arniston Rangers is a junior team founded in 1878 in the mining village of Gorebridge in Midlothian. They play at Newbyres Park which has been their home for almost all of their existence bar a few years here and there. I personally have been involved with the club for around five or six years and this is my fourth season as secretary, other members of the committee have been here a lot longer than me. Although I never grew up in Gorebridge I was always interested in local football and I became involved with Arniston soon after I moved to the village. I originally went along to games just as a supporter and also a work colleague was a player and soon after I joined the committee running the club. After the secretary resigned from his position I was asked to take over. It can be a challenging and time-consuming job. In my role I’m responsible for doing the paperwork regarding signing players and uploading the papers to the Scottish FA website, making sure no suspended players play etc. I liaise with other club secretary’s and match officials regarding upcoming games and booking training facilities. I also attend league association meetings on a fairly regular basis. On matchdays W.D.PAUL Funeral Directors Bespoke funeral arrangements in Gorebridge, Midlothian • Funerals • Flowers & Tributes • Funeral Cars • Headstones & Memorials Tel: 01875 820 955 Email: [email protected] Website: www.wdpaulfuneraldirectors.co.uk 22 Issue 83 we are usually up at the ground early to put the goal nets up and get the ground ready for match days. At the end of season 2017/18 we made the decision to move from the Scottish Junior Association over to the East of Scotland Association which is the 7th tier of Scottish football. This was a major decision for us as we had been a junior club for all our existence but with every local club at our level moving over, we felt it was in the club’s best interest to do so.