After a poor start to the season and a change of manager, Berwick Rangers seemed to have turned a corner of late. The future of a club haunted by relegation looks to be on the up. Only three defeats since January and five wins in the last six games of the season eased any relegations fears. If the season continued a little longer, they could have even threatened the play-off positions. Preparations are now well under away in attempt to get next season off to a a good start.
For those unfamiliar with the club, they currently play in the Scottish Football League Two but are actually based in England in the border town of Berwick Upon Tweed. Formed in 1891, The Gers have as yet never played in the top-flight of Scottish football, spending most of their history between leagues one and two.
They play at Shielfield Park, which has been their home since 1954, and since 2012 they have trained in Edinburgh which is over 50 miles away. This is with a view that player and staff recruitment will be easier and it helps their squad, many of whom are based in Scotland. This way of doing things does make life harder when trying to recruit part-time players from England. It was also not well received by locals when the decision was announced.
This season, they started out in the bottom tier of Scottish football and have been there since relegation back in 2008. Their season did not begin well. With the team struggling after just one win in seven games, and knocked out of the Scottish Cup, player-manager and former Scotland International Colin Cameron was sacked after a 4-1 defeat which left them fourth bottom. However, if they had won the game they could have found themselves second in the table.
At the beginning of November the club turned to their ex-manager John Coughlin to save their season. He was in charge the last time the Gers won promotion, although promotion was definitely not on the remit for this season. It was to keep the club in the league.
It was a tough start for Coughlin as he had to wait until just before Christmas to record his first victory back at Shielfield Park. This was the beginning of an excellent run which saw just four defeats in 20 games. They eventually finished seventh and this good run could be the springboard for a promotion push next season.
If they are to improve and push for promotion, next season begins now. Recruitment of new players has already begun and contract negotiations of players they wish to keep is well underway. Captain Jonny Fairbairn has signed a new deal as has goalkeeper Kevin Walker who kept eight clean sheets in the final 11 games. Defender Graeme Beveridge has also signed for a further year.
All connected with Berwick hope that John Coughlin can replicate his promotion achievements from his last stint at the club. With pre-season starting on the 16th June the new season for Berwick Rangers really does begin now.
