Small Scottish Village Prepares for Celtic Cup Dream Match

The village of Auchinleck hasn't seen excitement like this since The Who played their community center in 1969 before heading to Woodstock.

This Sunday, all 3,000 residents are buzzing as their local football team takes on Celtic, one of Scotland's biggest clubs, in the Scottish Cup fourth round. The sixth-tier Auchinleck Talbot squad, made up of tradesmen who work full-time jobs during the week, will face professional players who compete in European tournaments.

The match had to be moved 15 miles away to Rugby Park because their home stadium couldn't handle the expected crowd. Even if every person in Auchinleck bought tickets for the home section, Celtic's away fans would still outnumber them.

Manager Tommy Sloan, a forklift driver with 23 years at the club, has given his team Monday off from their day jobs to recover. Captain Neil McPherson says the dressing room is split evenly between Celtic and Rangers supporters, but they're all united in treating this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The team hasn't played a competitive match since December 19th because of frozen pitches. They've been training on Irvine Beach to stay sharp.

Club historian Jim McAuley calls Talbot "the biggest weeist club in Scotland" with good reason. Since 1909, they've won more than 100 trophies, including 14 Scottish Junior Cups, eight of them this century.

They came heartbreakingly close to an upset in 2012 against Hearts. Goalkeeper Andy Leishman saved a penalty before a late collision led to Hearts scoring with six minutes left. Former left-back Gordon Pope thought he'd equalized in stoppage time, but the linesman called offside. Replays later showed he was onside.

The Ripple Effect

The match will bring international attention to a village where everyone knows everyone. Local shops have decorated their windows in team colors, and the community center where The Who once played is hosting a pre-match rally.

For a team that will return to playing Pollok in west Glasgow next week while Celtic jets off to Bologna for European competition, the gap couldn't be wider. But Sloan remembers when they beat senior side Ayr United in 2019 and hopes history can repeat itself.

"If we could score first and put them under pressure for a wee while, I'd be delighted with that," Sloan says. His opposite number will be club legend Martin O'Neill, recently returned as interim manager to revive Celtic's season.

The odds say Celtic should cruise to victory, but Auchinleck's captain has a simple message: they're going to give it everything they have.