Barcelona to Buckie Thistle

This would usually be a busy time on the blog and, especially, on twitter with lots of clubs signing off the season with free admission or ‘pay what you want’, finalising pre-season plans for the summer and also selling season tickets for 2020/21.

Almost all of that is on hold, of course, so it has been a time to catch up on some reading, The Non-League Paper providing an invaluable weekly source of information and When Saturday Comes continuing to delve into areas of the game that others miss.

I’ve also recently finished ‘Barcelona to Buckie Thistle - Exploring Football's Roads Less Travelled,’ the third book from author Mat Guy and one which takes the Highland League as its core theme while also shedding light on the football culture that exists in some of Europe’s smallest nations, from the Faeroe Islands to Andorra.

Mat has been kind enough to answer a few questions from Affordable Football. He can be found on twitter and his new book, published by Luath Press is available from Waterstones.

Mat, can you tell us a little about your new book, ‘Barcelona to Buckie Thistle’ and your inspiration for writing it?

Barcelona to Buckie Thistle: Exploring Football’s Roads Less Travelled tries to prove the premise that every football institution, be it large or small, is a precious thing. The sense of belonging, identity, and meaning found by the supporters of clubs in the Highland league in Scotland or The Primera Divisio in Andorra is just as powerful as it is with the supporters of the world’s biggest teams.

It aims to be a celebration of all that is great about football away from the television cameras. That football in the Faroes, San Marino, or up in Wick and Fort William is a vibrant and exciting experience. I hope that the book shines a light on these places and proves that they deserve to be on everyone’s bucket lists along with Camp Nou or the San Siro.

The inspiration for the book came when someone at a book signing told me that writing about the Highland League would be ‘a waste of time’. That the league was ‘not worth the bother’. It was a red rag to someone like me, who prefers the lower leagues and lesser lights of the beautiful game. Personally, I have found such a rich vein of amazing stories, people, clubs and nations that I no longer have the time to watch the Premier League!

Was your close family connection to the Highlands one of the reasons why you wanted to explore the area’s football scene a little more closely?

I knew I had a family connection – my grandmother was born in Aberdeen and had lived a nomadic childhood between Inverness and the granite city – but she never spoke of her life up there. It was extremely moving to learn about her life as I travelled around the Highland League. A journey of discovery on two fronts that took me to some unexpected places and some mind-blowing revelations!

The Highland League has been quietly doing what it does for many years now and you clearly found with many of the clubs you visited that they were a really important part of the towns and communities they served?

These teams are the lifeblood of the communities they serve. One is ingrained in the other and has been that way, in some instances, for more than 125 years. Winning is important but being a focal point for friends to gather on a Saturday afternoon is more so. That said, it is also a league of great skill and endeavour, proudly representing some of the most remote places on mainland Britain. I’ve yet to see a poor game in the Highland League.

Do you see the Highland League managing to cope with the gradual loss of teams such as Cove Rangers to the SPFL and being able to bring in new teams from the other leagues in the area.

In the past the league has lost Peterhead, Elgin City, Ross County, as well as Inverness Thistle and Inverness Caledonian when they merged to form Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Every time, new clubs have stepped up to keep the league vibrant and competitive. With the loss of Cove, it opened the door for Brora Rangers, Inverurie Loco Works, Buckie Thistle, Fraserburgh and the like to take centre stage. Football is such a passion up there, and there are some very good teams still in Junior football like Banks O’Dee. There is more than enough to keep the league at the top of its game.

Which club in the area left the biggest impression on you?

Fort William and Wick Academy stood out. They are the two most remote teams in the league and have to overcome even more than their counterparts. Both are amazing communities who love their team and are so friendly and welcoming. I can’t wait to get back up to both, as well as some of the teams I’ve yet to visit, as soon as I can

Looking at the international part of the book, you found a passion for the game amongst the players in Liechtenstein, San Marino and Andorra but was it the Faeroe Islands where you really found a football culture?

I think the football culture in the Faroes is more akin to what we understand that to be. Face-painted ultras, choreographed songs and dances, drums and the like. But I think the football cultures of Liechtenstein, Andorra, and San Marino are just as fascinating and captivating because they are different to the norm.

In Liechtenstein they are quite reserved and quiet – but don’t let that fool you into thinking they don’t care. Their football culture is born out of facing down Alpine snowstorms and bone chilling temperatures to support their nation. A goal for Liechtenstein is an event to cherish and savour. It just doesn’t come with all the flares and whatever. But I found it to be every bit as humbling to experience the Liechtenstein national anthem, to see a team fight for their flag just as you would find at Wembley or Hampden.

It’s really refreshing to see the way other nations consume their football – and how that is interpreted on the terraces and stands. Variety is the spice of life, and I’m so glad that they do things their way.

You are very enthusiastic about the Nations League and the benefits of regular competitive football for the smaller nations. Do you worry that the big clubs and leagues will use the current crisis to try and squeeze the international calendar?

I think the Nations league is here to stay. It serves a purpose for those at the top and bottom. For me it is the best football tournament in the world! Where else could you watch European minnows playing one another? I was so excited for this second edition of the Nations league. I had a notion to return to Liechtenstein and Andorra. Sadly, I think we will lose this 2020 edition, but I have no doubt, when equilibrium returns to the football calendar that it will too. It is such a fascinating concept, and its great to see other confederations going down the same route.

On your web page it says you write for the Gibraltar national team’s matchday programme. How did that come about?

My reputation for loving the more obscure corners of the beautiful game flagged my name to the producers of the Gibraltar programme. I loved getting random emails asking for 500 words on the Estonian or Armenian national team and their history! I just loved doing the research, and then seeing my work in an international programme. I’m never asked to write about Italy or Spain, just Liechtenstein and Georgia – and I am perfectly fine with that!

When you are not travelling to football around the globe where can you normally be found on a Saturday afternoon?

I love a trip up to Accrington Stanley. But closer to home its Salisbury and Blackfield and Langley in the Southern League

And where’s next on your list? Is there a particular ground or country that you really would like to see?

In a perfect world where money is no object I would love to watch the Oceania World Cup qualifying groups with the likes of Tonga, Fiji and American Samoa. I’d also love to go back to Bhutan in the Himalayas, and I’d like to visit Palestine to watch an international game.

More realistically, I’d love to write something on the Highland Amateur Cup, which is a competition run through the summer, where teams from Shetland, the Orkneys, the Outer Hebrides, as well as other remote points in the far north. I hear some teams travel by trawler to away fixtures. Now that sounds like my cup of tea!