STORM CLOUDS CLEAR FOR FORT
Following several public meetings and committee sessions , on 29 April 2018 came the news that five of the existing board members had indeed left the club . On the plus side they left a healthy bank balance and three new recruits took over control , willing to underwrite the estimated £ 70,000 annual running costs of the only semi-professional club in the Western Highlands . Days later the new board announced that the club would also continue in the Highland League for the 2018 / 19 season . Kris Anderson was recruited as new first team manager charged with assembling a team able to compete rather than struggle in the fifth tier of Scottish football .
Despite a thriving academy set up , the Forts have always struggled to attract players of sufficient quality , often resorting to shipping in players from Glasgow and Inverness . Their traditional dragnet for local talent is from the surrounding areas of Lochaber , Oban and Speyside as well as the Isle of Skye . However , this flow of talent has dwindled since the closure of the Lochaber Welfare League , a summer competition , in 2016 . Even nearby amateur club Ballachulish are forced to play in a Glasgow centric amateur league as there is nothing closer for them to join .
Fort William as an area , however , has produced players of a very decent standing . Bolton Wanderers ’ legend John McGinlay started his career at Claggan Park , while ex-Chelsea and Swindon forward Duncan Shearer was born in the town .
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