OFFICIALS at an East Renfrewshire football club which helped to hone the skills of Scotland captain Andy Robertson are looking forward to a bright future after achieving an important milestone.

Giffnock SC has secured a place in the West of Scotland Football League (WoSFL) for next season.

It is joining forces with the existing men’s senior squad and staff from Govan-based Harmony Row FC to bring the East Renfrewshire club’s name into the senior football pyramid for the first time.

Giffnock SC vice-chairman Niall MacKay, who has been a coach at the club for around 18 years and a committee member for nearly a decade, welcomed the move.

He said: “With Giffnock SC being one of the biggest clubs in the country, it’s only right that we should have pathways in both the girls’ side and the boys’ side.

“From the start of this season, we have a women’s team playing in the women’s pyramid system and, from the start of next season, we’ll have a men’s senior team in the club as well. It’s great because it completes the pathway on both sides.”

Last year, the club struck a ‘site swap’ deal with Hutchesons’ Grammar which saw it sign a 60-year lease for the grass pitches and pavilion at Auldhouse, off Thornliebank Road, with the school taking control of Giffnock’s former base at the Norwood playing fields, in Dumbreck.

Niall added: “The move to Auldhouse gave us the foundation and the really solid building base to project the club onwards and upwards.”

The tie-up with Harmony Row happened after a Giffnock player put Niall in touch with Keith Gibson, who is a coach at the Govan club.

“One of our over-35s/40s players had heard there were some issues with the Harmony Row senior team and a place to play,” said Niall.

“He introduced Keith to me nine or 10 months ago and we worked together, trying to get to know each other and build a relationship to form this partnership that we now have, where Harmony Row will come under the Giffnock banner.

“It came about through the wider Giffnock family and that’s what the club is all about,” said Niall. “We’re a community club that wants to promote the best interests for not just the players but also the local community.”

It’s a long way from the first rung on the Scottish footballing ladder – the WoSFL’s Fourth Division – to the top of the tree.

As things stand, there will be eight tiers between the SPFL Premiership and the league Giffnock will be competing in next season.

But Niall is excited about what lies ahead for the club.

He said: “We want the club to be the best vehicle it can be for talented youngsters who want to progress to a career in football.

“We have several players who left the club and moved into professional football – I guess the most famous being Andy Robertson at Liverpool.

“He’s an ex-Giffnock boy.”