The village club one game away from the football big time

3 hours agoChris MacLennan,BBC Scotland, BroraandSteven McKenzie,Highlands and islands reporterBBCBrora Rangers' director Mary Stewart grew up on a street behind Dudgeon ParkA part-time village football club is potentially one game away from joining Scotland's national professional leagues.Highland League champions Brora Rangers FC is in a play-off against Edinburgh City for a place in League Two.The teams drew 1-1 in the first leg in Brora and are now preparing for a final showdown in the capital on Saturday."It would be amazing to get into the second division - this is making history for Brora," said club director Mary Stewart, who grew on a street behind the team's Dudgeon Park ground.Brora, about 50 miles (80km) north of Inverness, is a community of about 1,200 people on the North Coast 500 tourist route.In the 1900s, Brora was the first place north of Inverness to have electricity, leading its residents to nickname their home Electric City.And it was the site of the UK's most northerly deep coal mine, before the last shafts closed in the 1970s.The village football team was founded in 1879 and joined the Highland League in 1962.It also competed for promotion to League Two in 2015, but narrowly lost out to Montrose.Mary Stewart believes her beloved club is on the brink of joining the big leagues."We've had a lot of good times over the years, but this would top it all," she said."I think we've got the quality in the squad, we've got a fantastic management and coaching team."She added: "It would be great to have all these new people come up and see what we've got to offer."'There will be tears'Struan Gunn broke a finger celebrating Brora's goal last SaturdayResidents of Brora said excitement was building ahead of the weekend's crunch match.But life-long fan Struan Gunn was left with a painful reminder of last Saturday's 1-1 draw.The 35-year-old broke a finger celebrating Brora Rangers' opening goal."I got a little bit excited and ended up having to go to hospital," said Gunn.He said securing promotion would be a dream come true."It will bring in a lot of income and for younger people playing football it would be a stepping stone for them as well," he said."I watched Brora since I was tiny, and was going to games where we were losing five, six-nil, and now we're potentially going into the Scottish leagues."Asked how he would celebrate a win over Edinburgh City, he said: "There will be tears."Dr Nick Lindsay, chairman of Brora's Clyne Heritage Society, believes the club has a "real shot" at winning promotionDr Nicky Lindsay, 69, who helps to run Brora Heritage Centre, said the whole village was caught up in the excitement."We had a big crowd watching the first leg, which didn't go all our way, but it's still all to play for and we're in with a real shot of getting into the league."It would just be incredible for Brora. They've really put themselves on the map as a footballing village."Aileen Ogilvie said Brora was well-known for its footballAileen Ogilvie, who also works at the heritage centre, is an Inverness Caledonian Thistle fan but will be offering her support to Brora Rangers."When people find where you work they know Brora because there is a really good football team there," she said."It's a really exciting time for the village. The football history is embedded in our story."George Mackenzie urged the team to "just give your everything"Restaurant worker George Mackenzie, 25, said by Saturday the village would be "absolutely buzzing".The club is expected to bring a large support to Edinburgh.Mackenzie said: "It will almost be like last one in the village turn the lights off."Asked for a message to the team, he added: "Just give your everything."