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Caledonian Braves F.C.

Caledonian Braves Football Club is a Scottish semi-professional football club based in North Lanarkshire. They are members of the Lowland Football League, in the fifth tier of the Scottish football league system.

Caledonian Braves
Full nameCaledonian Braves Football Club
Nickname(s)The Braves
Founded2011, as Edusport Academy
GroundAlliance Park,
Strathclyde Country Park,
Motherwell
Capacity500 (100 seated)
Managing DirectorChris Ewing
Head coachRicky Waddell
LeagueLowland League
2023–24Lowland League, 12th of 18
Websitehttps://www.caledonianbraves.com/
Current season

The club originated from Edusport Academy, a residential youth academy for French footballers founded in 2011 and initially based at the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, before relocating to Lesser Hampden in Glasgow in 2015. A second centre based in Edinburgh opened in 2014. From the 2014–15 season onwards, they fielded a team under the Edusport Academy name in Scottish senior football, the only private academy to do so in a recognised senior league. They initially played in the South of Scotland League before winning promotion to the Lowland League in 2017. As Edusport, the senior team played at the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire (2014–2015) and Galabank in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway (2015–2019).

From 2018 onwards, the senior team began to operate separately from the academy after launching a membership scheme, Our Football Club. In 2019 they were rebranded as Caledonian Braves and opened their own Alliance Park ground within Strathclyde Country Park in North Lanarkshire.

History

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Academy

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The Edusport Academy was founded in 2011 by Chris Ewing with the aim of helping talented young French footballers to develop their skills in football and the English language, and gain opportunities with British professional clubs.[1] Initially, the main training venues were the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, and the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire,[2] with English classes taking place at New College Lanarkshire.[3] Edusport expanded in 2014, opening an Edinburgh centre with training at Ainslie Park and education at Edinburgh College.[4] In 2015, they decided to relocate from Motherwell to a new Glasgow base; the Academy now trains at Lesser Hampden with educational classes at City of Glasgow College.[5]

Four women were added to the Edusport Academy programme in 2015. They are based at the Edinburgh centre and will gain senior experience through a partnership with Spartans of the Scottish Women's Premier League.[6]

Senior football

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In June 2014, Edusport Academy successfully applied for membership of the semi-professional South of Scotland League in the sixth tier of the Scottish football league system,[7] becoming the first private football academy in the world to operate a team in a FIFA-recognised senior league.[8] They made further Scottish football history in a league match against Creetown in September 2014, when they first fielded a team composed entirely of French nationals.[8] The senior team won two trophies in their first season, the South of Scotland League Cup and the Cree Lodge Cup.[9] They applied to move up a level to the Lowland League in 2015, but their application was rejected.[10]

Edusport Academy won the 2016–17 South of Scotland League title to gain promotion to the Lowland League, the fifth tier of Scottish football. In February 2018, Ewing announced plans to separate the senior team from the academy and attract a fanbase by launching a new online membership scheme, Our Football Club. Members will have voting and decision-making powers, including a say on choosing a new name, crest and colours for the team. They will be able to recommend potential signings, but will have no say on team selection. Ewing stated at the launch of the project that his aim was to reach the Scottish Premiership by 2025.[11]

At the start of the 2019–20 season Edusport Academy rebranded the club as the Caledonian Braves following a vote online by members of the Our Football Club.com project.[12] [13] In the first few seasons as a senior club, the Braves found moderate success in the Lowland League, finishing between 8th and 12th place from the curtailed 2019-20 season up until the 2022-23 season.

Despite mid-table finishes, the team twice held the record for biggest home wins in the league, defeating Vale of Leithen 9-0 in the 2020-21 season, and defeating Dalbeattie Star 10-0 in the 2022-23 season.

The club won the Southern Counties Challenge Cup in 2023, defeating Dalbeattie Star 3-1 in the final held at Galabank. They reached the final the previous year but were defeated 3-2 by the same opposition.

The Braves also proved to be a force in the South Challenge Cup, reaching the Round of 16 of the 2021-22 competition, where they were defeated 3-1 by eventual champions Auchinleck Talbot, and reaching the semi-finals in 2022-23, losing 2-1 to eventual champions The Spartans.

Stadium

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Grandstand and football pitch at Galabank 
Galabank, where Edusport Academy played their home fixtures from 2015 to 2019

For the first season, South of Scotland League home matches were played at the Hamilton Palace Sports Ground in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. From 2015 onwards, the team groundshared with Annan Athletic at their Galabank stadium in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway.[14] From the start of the 2019–20 Lowland League season, the team play at Alliance Park, their own purpose-built facility at Bothwellhaugh in Strathclyde Country Park near Motherwell, North Lanarkshire.[15] The name of the ground, which was voted for by more than 90% of Our Football Club members, was chosen to reflect the unity between the French and Scottish elements of the club.[16]

Current squad

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As of 10 August 2024[17]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK United States  USA Bernie White
2 DF Scotland  SCO Jack Brown
3 DF Scotland  SCO Robbie Stewart
4 DF Scotland  SCO Greig Stewart
5 MF Scotland  SCO John Guthrie (team captain)
6 DF Nigeria  NGA Daniel Martins
7 MF Scotland  SCO Zac Butterworth
8 MF Greece  GRE Kristian Gkegka
9 FW Scotland  SCO Ross McNeil (club captain)
10 MF Scotland  SCO Connor McLaren
11 MF Scotland  SCO Cameron Breadner
No. Pos. Nation Player
12 DF Scotland  SCO Jack McDowall
14 MF Scotland  SCO Ryan Murray
15 DF Scotland  SCO Aiden Clocherty
16 MF Scotland  SCO Leo McCartney
17 FW Scotland  SCO Reg McLaren
18 FW Scotland  SCO Josh Gemmell
19 MF Scotland  SCO Kian Speirs
20 MF Scotland  SCO Lennon Walker
21 MF Scotland  SCO Enzo Wright (out onloan to Kilsyth Rangers)
22 DF Scotland  SCO Martin McArthur
75 GK Scotland  SCO Kyle King

Club Staff

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As of 10 August 2024[18]

Position Name
Managing Director Chris Ewing
Head Coach Ricky Waddell
Assistant Coaches Dorian Ogunro, Cole Starrs
Goalkeeping Coach Ross Paterson
Head Physio Leanne Glately

Season-by-season records

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Season Division Tier League Scottish Cup
Finish Played Wins Draws Losses GD Points
Edusport Academy
2014–15 South of Scotland League 6 5th 26 15 2 9 +42 47 Did not compete
2015–16 South of Scotland League 6 2nd 26 20 3 3 +74 63 Did not compete
2016–17 South of Scotland League 6 1st 26 22 2 2 +60 68 Preliminary Round 1, losing to Colville Park
2017–18 Lowland League 5 10th 30 9 7 14 -3 34 2nd Round, losing to Elgin City
2018–19 Lowland League 5 9th 28 9 6 13 -9 33 2nd Round, losing to Fraserburgh
Caledonian Braves
2019–20 Lowland League 5 8th† 26 11 3 12 +2 36 1st Round, losing to Rothes
2020–21 Lowland League 5 12th† 14 4 1 9 -6 13 1st Round, losing to Edinburgh City
2021–22 Lowland League 5 9th 34 15 8 11 +19 53 1st Round, losing to University of Stirling
2022–23 Lowland League 5 10th 36 15 6 15 +12 51 1st Round, losing to East Kilbride
2023–24 Lowland League 5 12th 34 12 9 13 +4 45 1st Round, losing to Fraserburgh

† Season curtailed due to coronavirus pandemic

Honours

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  • Southern Counties Challenge Cup:
    • Winners: 2022–23, 2023–24
    • Finalists: 2021–22
  • South of Scotland League
  • South of Scotland League Cup
    • Winners (2): 2014–15, 2015–16
  • Cree Lodge Cup
    • Winners: 2014–15
  • Haig Gordon Cup
    • Winners: 2018–19
  • Tweedie Cup
    • Winners: 2015–16

Affiliated club(s)

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References

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  1. ^ Mitchell, Robert (9 November 2011). "Edusport academy hopes to make footballing stars in Ravenscraig". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  2. ^ "Football". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  3. ^ "Education". Edusport Academy. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  4. ^ "Edinburgh". Edusport Academy. Archived from the original on 19 June 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  5. ^ "Edusport Academy evolves". Edusport Academy. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  6. ^ "Spartans welcome French quartet to Ainslie Park". Spartans F.C. Women. 8 September 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  7. ^ Gillespie, Stuart (6 June 2014). "St Cuthbert Wanderers boss welcomes new sides". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  8. ^ a b "South of Scotland League". Edusport Academy. Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  9. ^ "Wigtown unlucky in Cree Lodge cup final". The Galloway Gazette. Newton Stewart. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  10. ^ Thomson, Paul (3 June 2015). "Lowland League welcome Cumbernauld Colts for next season". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  11. ^ "Edusport Academy eyes Premiership place by 2025 under web-based fan membership". BBC Sport. 7 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  12. ^ Marketing. "Caledonian Braves – NLL Latest News – NL Leisure". www.nlleisure.co.uk. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  13. ^ "Home". Our Football Club. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  14. ^ Rutherford, Nichola; Rinaldi, Giancarlo (29 July 2015). "South of Scotland Live". BBC News. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  15. ^ "Alliance Park, home to Edusport Academy – Football Ground Map". www.footballgroundmap.com. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  16. ^ "Our new home!". Our Football Club. 29 May 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  17. ^ "The Team". Caledonian Braves. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  18. ^ "Staff | Caledonian Braves". Caledonian Braves Football Club. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
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55°48′02″N 4°02′55″W / 55.800431°N 4.048498°W / 55.800431; -4.048498

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