4 days ago
Experience order of the summer for Stirling boss - but skipper's future unsure
It's been just over a year since Albion boss Alan Maybury took the Forthbank hot seat - with some key names already in the door in a more settled summer.
Twelve months is proving a long time in football as Stirling Albion boss Alan Maybury insists continuity is key to improve their fortunes in League Two.
Almost a year to the day after the Irishman walked into the chaos of the Binos hotseat after relegation, the dismissal of Darren Young and a much-criticised recruitment process, things are calmer in 2025 as he builds up his squad for the 2025/26 season.
Maybury has already managed to secure three much-praised signatures in League One's joint top goal-scorer in Ross Cunningham from Kelty Hearts, one of the Binos' bete noires in Forfar forward Russell McLean and most recently, promoted skipper Stewart Murdoch from East Fife.
Speaking to the Observer this week, he reflected on the changes made over the past year or so - and his determination to get things right from the off with a more controlled squad build this time around.
Maybury said: 'I was very keen on keeping as many boys as we could rather than having a big rebuild like there was last season.
'It was a big job to get things going last season, so I was conscious not to have that - the loan boys have moved on and there have been one or two more who have moved on for various reasons but it has been pretty limited.
'Looking at the squad we had last year, as much I don't really look at age in picking a team, we maybe had too many young players at times and lacked that bit of know-how to get where we want to go.
'I've been making the effort to recruit leaders and guys who have been through it at the top end of things and we're still busy in trying to add one or two more to the mix.'
The new arrivals have added early enthusiasm to the Binos faithful after an up-and-down season last time around which flirted with a possible late play-off run, before ultimately petering out to a sixth place finish.
But the Albion boss expressed satisfaction in his early work - and said the new arrivals were big targets identified early in the process.
'Ross was top scorer in League One and in the Team of the Year; I've actually been chasing him for over a year and it's been a bit of a long pursuit which has worked out.
'I worked with Russell [McLean] for a short period at Edinburgh and he gives us a physical option that maybe we lacked at points which can allow us to play differently at points.
'I felt when I came in last year that Stirling didn't score enough goals, we brought in Ally [Roy] which didn't quite work out, so McLean has scored a lot of goals against us, we like what he can bring and know him well.
'Stewart was the captain at East Fife and after speaking to him, he is the ultimate professional and has that leadership streak to make sure things are done right.'
However, despite those new arrivals, there is still uncertainty over the future of long-time Stirling skipper Ross McGeachie.
The popular defender - who has been with the Binos since the age of 13 and had his testimonial match back in 2023 - is one of the names still negotiating a new deal with Stirling as the new arrivals begin to come in through the door at Forthbank.
The 31-year-old played 39 times across all competitions last season, eventually holding on a role on the right side of a callow back three as the Binos produced a late season run to the line - including helping to guide impressive loanees Leyton Grant and Scott Constable.
But the Albion stalwart is still mulling over a contract offer from Stirling, with boss Alan Maybury also confirming that young defender Sam Denham is set to sign a deal to stay with the club after an injury-hit season.
Elsewhere, there is also interest in bringing back Grant and full-back Jack Harkness - who both impressed on loan from Rangers last season - after their release was confirmed by the Ibrox club.
Maybury said: 'There is an offer on the table for Ross, there are a couple of issues we're trying to sort out with him to get that deal over the line.
'Sam is staying on with us and will be continuing to recover from his injury - the timetable will hopefully be the start of the season for him.
'We're keeping an eye on those guys' situations after they left Rangers but ideally, I wouldn't want quite as many loan players as last year, you always prefer your own players.
'We've also got some good young ones like MacKenzie Carse, Aaron Weir, Harry Wright and Cooper Knox in the club already - we're expecting a lot from these guys.
'If someone becomes available who we think can improve things then we'll look at it, but we feel the core of what we want is in the building.'
