Edinburgh businessman backs football club’s historic shirt giveaway

Jul 26

2 min read

Edinburgh businessman, Ivan Ralph, has returned to his roots to support a special community initiative, which will see his hometown football club, Nairn County, hand out free commemorative home shirts to around 200 local school children.

The club has produced a unique kit for this season to mark the 50th anniversary of winning the Highland League title for the only time, and as part of the celebrations, every primary-three pupil across Nairnshire is to be given a top.

Pupils going into primary three in August from Millbank, Rosebank, Auldearn, Cawdor, Ardersier and Croy primary schools will become the proud owners of the jersey, which recalls the club’s finest hour since its formation in 1909, with the names of the victorious squad included on the front.

The initiative is rooted in the message of the club’s ‘Past, Present and Future’ shirt campaign, honouring the iconic 1975/76 title-winning squad, being proud of today’s squad and looking forward to the next generation of County players and supporters.

The delivery of the project has been made possible by the generous support of club partner, Edinburgh-based solicitors and estate agents Ralph Sayer, whose owner Ivan Ralph is a life-long ‘Wee County’ fan, having grown up in the town before leaving for university.

Having seen his boyhood heroes lift the title as a youngster, Ivan was delighted to help bring the idea to fruition:

“County has always retained a special place in my heart, and I am delighted to help with this initiative as the club marks the 50th anniversary of becoming Highland League champions,” said Ivan:

“I was in primary three myself when I went with my dad to see Nairn win the title in a play-off against Fraserburgh and remember the occasion well. I went on to be a ball boy at Station Park and that coincided with the likes of Bryan Gunn, Eric Black and John McGinley being there, who all went on to become big-name players.

“It’s a great way to help encourage the next generation of supporters of Nairn County and we’re all looking forward to seeing the kids come along to the matches this season proudly wearing the special tops.”

Explaining the inspiration behind the giveaway, chairman Kevin Reid said: “We wanted to do something truly meaningful to celebrate this milestone. We wanted something that brings the community into the heart of the club’s history. Research shows that around primary-three age is when many children start to form lifelong loyalties in football.

“We don’t expect Nairn County to be every child’s first team, but we’d love to be their second. More than that, we want them to feel part of their local club and to become regular faces at Station Park for years to come.”

www.ralphsayer.com