Brechin City’s Rory McAllister and Neil Janczyk have had a taste of SPL football, and both revealed they still harbour ambitions to one day get back there.
Being part of a Scottish Cup run with the Glebe Park club to the quarter-finals and possibly further would certainly enhance their case to get another crack at top flight football.
Second division top scorer McAllister played for Inverness Caledonian Thistle, while team-mate Janczyk started out at Hearts before moving to St Johnstone.
Neither managed to become first team regulars but, at 23 and 27 respectively, they are young enough to find their way back to the summit of the Scottish game.
McAllister said, “If the right offer came in I would look at it. If I keep doing what I’m doing then I might get the chance, who knows.
“I work as a plumber away from football and in a year’s time I will have my gas qualifications as well so I wouldn’t just jump at any offer.
“But if it was the right one to go full-time again then I’d consider it. I’m out of contract in the summer so we’ll see what happens.
“I’m really enjoying it at Brechin. I like playing with the lads and the team are doing well so if I don’t get something which makes me sit up and look at it then I won’t complain.
“I played with guys who are in the SPL now and I think I am capable of playing alongside them.Platform”It would just be up to someone to give me the chance. Obviously the cup is a good platform.
“If we beat Buckie we will be in a quarter-final and then take it from there.”
Janczyk added, “The main ambition at Brechin is to get promoted and move up a level again.
“For me personally, coming here has been a great decision because I have got my hunger for the game back again.
“We have done well, getting into the play-offs and we’d love to go a step further with a cup run.
“It is hard to go from full-time football to part-time because the two are totally different.
“I found it difficult in the first year getting used to just training a few nights a week as opposed to every day.
“But once you adapt it gets easier. My first year here I didn’t play that much but since then I have been doing better.”InsightMcAllister’s Highland experience has given the Brechin squad an insight into the task they will be faced with at Buckie in Saturday afternoon’s fifth-round tie.
He stressed, “There will be pressure on us to win up at Buckie but it won’t be easy and nobody should think it will.
“I know a few of the boys up there. I played with Zander Sutherland at Inverness and know a couple of their other players from Aberdeen.
“There is no way we will underestimate them because they have good players and they will be desperate to put a second division team out.
“The Highland League is a decent quality. I know people dismiss it because it’s up north and all that, but the top teams could hold their own in the SFL no problem.
“There are a lot of talented players so we’ll have to be at the top of our game to go through.”
As Janczyk pointed out, Brechin have recent memories of coming up against Highland League opposition.
He recalled, “We played at Wick last season. We were 4-2 down with 10 minutes to go and were lucky to get a draw from it.
“It was a long, long way to go. I don’t think Buckie is quite as far but it’s still going to be a decent journey.
“They will be a decent side and will fancy their chances at home so we’re going to have to be at our very best.”