Overview
Peterhead FC are a football club based in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. They currently play in the Scottish Football League Second Division, following promotion in 2004-05.
Their home ground is Balmoor in Peterhead, with a capacity of 4,000. The present manager is Steve Paterson, assisted by assistant manager, Neale Cooper. They replaced Iain Stewart and Paul Mathers, who were sacked on 29th October 2006.
Peterhead’s traditional rivals are the Highland League team Fraserburgh F.C. – however since their election to the Scottish Football League, this rivalry has waned somewhat.
History
The club was formed in 1891, and played in an area of the town’s Raemoss Park gifted to the club by the town’s Feuars Managers. This land was to become Recreation Park, Peterhead’s home for over 100 years, and was opened by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.
Peterhead began their competitive life nine years later, joining the Aberdeenshire League, which they remained members of until 1931 when they joined the Highland League.
In this time, the club had just one success, winning the Aberdeenshire Cup in 1906. They eventually repeated this success in consecutive seasons, 1934-35 and 1935-36.
In 1939, league competition was suspended due to the outbreak of the Second World War, resuming in 1946. Peterhead were then to go through a period of success, winning the Highland League for the first time in that first season back in action. This was to prove the spark for further success for the club, winning the Highland League again in 1949 and 1950.
It was nearly forty years before the club would again take league honours, winning their fourth title in 1988-89, and a fifth under the guidance of Ronnie Brown ten years later.
Much of Peterhead’s success has come in cup competitions, none more so than the Aberdeenshire Cup, which they have won 20 times, most recently in 1998-99.
Peterhead are also five times winners of the Highland League Cup, and six times winners of the Scottish Qualifying Cup (North). In addition they hold one Aberdeenshire Shield, again won in the highly successful 1998-99 campaign.
Just eleven days into the new millennium, Peterhead were voted into the Scottish Football League along with fellow Highland League side Elgin City, compensating for the loss of two clubs to the expanded Scottish Premier League (SPL).
It is believed that the move from Recreation Park to the modern Balmoor Stadium, which was opened on September 28 1997, had much to do with the decision although the move was not so popular among some of the community in the town. Recreation Park was bought by the supermarket chain Safeway, and is now a Morrisons store.
Despite their elevation to the SFL’s ranks, Peterhead remain members of the Aberdeenshire FA and are still eligible to enter the Aberdeenshire League (now an under-21 league), Aberdeenshire Cup and Aberdeenshire Shield, though the club have failed to take this opportunity in recent seasons due to fixture congestion.
Peterhead quickly established themselves in Division Three, finishing their debut season in 5th place under the guidance of Ian Wilson, and reaching the Quarter Finals of the Scottish Cup for the first time. It was during this campaign that current manager Iain Stewart was brought to the club as a player.
Following two consecutive fourth place finishes, Wilson was sacked in January 2004 to be replaced by Stewart.
Assisted by Paul Mathers, Stewart guided the club to a third consecutive fourth-placed finish but was to buck the trend in his first full season as boss, leading the club to promotion by virtue of finishing second to champions Gretna F.C..
A year later, Peterhead came close to a second successive promotion. The introduction of a playoff system meant their third place finish gave them a chance of again being promoted alongside Division Two champions Gretna. Partick Thistle’s equaliser just thirty seconds from the end of the second leg of the playoff final saw the match go to extra time and penalties, with The Jags eventually promoted to the First Division.
Honours
Highland League: (5) 1946/47, 1948/49, 1949/50, 1988/89, 1998/99
Highland League Cup Winners: (5) 1962/63, 1965/66, 1967/68, 1980/81, 1988/89
Scottish Qualifying Cup (North) Winners: (6) 1946/47, 1975/76, 1977/78, 1978/79, 1985/86, 1997/98
Aberdeenshire Cup Winners: (20) 1905/06, 1934/35, 1935/36, 1946/47, 1948/49, 1949/50, 1958/59, 1962/63, 1964/65, 1967/68, 1968/69, 1969/70, 1970/71, 1974/75, 1976/77, 1978/79, 1984/85, 1987/88, 1988/89, 1998/99
Aberdeenshire Shield Winners: (1) 1998/99
Club Records
Biggest league win: 17-0 .v. Fort William 1998
Biggest home defeat: 0-8 .v. Lossiemouth 1993
Biggest cup defeat: 0-13 .v. Aberdeen (Scottish Cup in 1923-24)
Record home attendance, all-time: 8,643 .v. Raith Rovers (Scottish Cup 4th Round Replay, 25 February 1987, at Recreation Park)
Record home attendance at Balmoor: 3,700 .v. Partick Thistle (Second Division, 2006)
Current squad
No. Position Player
- Scotland GK Greg Kelly (on loan from Aberdeen)
- Scotland GK John McCafferty
- Scotland DF Iain Good
- Scotland DF Neil Stephen
- Scotland DF Stephen McNally
- Scotland DF Mark Perry
- Scotland DF Craig Tully
- Scotland MF Jamie Buchan
- Scotland MF Graeme Sharp
- Scotland MF Dougie Cameron
No. Position Player
- Scotland MF Chris Hegarty
- Scotland MF Keith Gibson
- Northern Ireland MF Bryan Gilfillan
- Scotland MF Ashley McInnes
- Scotland MF Allan Youngson
- Scotland FW Martin Wood
- Scotland FW Martin Bavidge
- Scotland FW Bobby Linn
- Scotland FW Stuart McKay
Out on loan
No. Position Player
- Scotland MF Colin Robertson (on loan to Huntly)
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