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MATCH POSTPONED AGAIN AFTER PITCH INSPECTION WATERLOGGED PITCH6th December - Game to be played at Haddington on 10th December 7:45pm. Scottish Cup Underdog Day It's a first for the Caley Jags as we face Lowland League side Tranent in the 3rd Round of the Scottish Cup in front of a sell out crowd at Foresters Park. Unfortunately for dogs, they won't be able to see this one as they have been banned due to the expected sold out crowd. Our Middle East correspondent is The Mantis who gives us this insight into what we can expect when we get to Foresters Park to meet the Belters. An ex-mining town of about 12000, about 6 miles from the Edinburgh boundary and now bypassed by the A1. A working class town compared to the more douce Haddington where Moff and RiG live. People from Tranent are traditionally known as Belters and this nickname has transferred to the team. The Battle of Prestonpans (Johnnie Cope and all that) was just along the road. In common with a few other mining towns in the Lothians, Tranent has an annual Gala week and crowning of the Gala Queen. Notable connections with ICT are Ian Black, whose father and grandfather were also footballers, who played 132 times for us between 2004 and 2009, and Steven Hislop, who was assistant manager at Tranent. Thanks to Mantis for this preview 👍 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Match/Ticket/Info ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The team was formerly named Tranent Juniors and won the Scottish Junior Cup in 1935. In 2018 they moved from the Juniors to the new pyramid setup and were promoted to the Lowland League in 2022. They currently lie 3rd, equal on points with Bonnyrigg, and 4 points behind leaders Clydebank. The club's motto, which you will see writ large at our end, is "Lie Forrit" which means roughly "go forward". The match is a sellout at about 1350 of which we have been allocated 400. We will be entering from the main road where the ground is up a short alley. We will be on the uncovered grassy banking while the home fans will be under cover down the side. Parking shouldn't be a big problem. There is also an Asda right across the road where I have parked before. There are a few pubs in the town and I wouldn't be too fussed about them but apparently Whispers, just along the High Street, is connected to the club. ⏰ Gates open: 2:00pm 🎟️ 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐎𝐔𝐓 - No cash gate 🔴 Home Supporters: Access via both the High Street Gate and Berts Gate 🔵 Away Supporters: Access via Top Gate only - entrance from the High Street 🥧 Pie Hut: Open to both sets of fans Cash and card accepted ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This was our last squad in the 1-1 draw at Alloa which showed three changes in the starting XI from our slick win over Queen of the South last weekend on the telly. Last 6 in League1 ICTFC 2-2 Kelty P'Head 0-1 ICTFC ICTFC 1-0 Monty ICTFC 1-0 Cove ICTFC 4-0 QotS Alloa 1-1 ICTFC Just to reinforce the ticket situation. This game is currently sold out. No tickets will be on sale at the ground. It was a less than impressive performance at Alloa but we still came away with a point against one of the better organised teams in the league who will no doubt be challenging for the top slot. Certainly a banker for a play off position. Our pedigree in the Scottish Cup has been great over the years from non league right up to winning the Scottish Cup in 2015 and again reaching the final a few years ago where we went down to Celtic. However, we are now the ones facing the potential banana skin whereas we were normally the underdog, a position we were more comfortable with. This time, it's Tranent who will fancy their chances. Beware the underdog, the only dog allowed in the stadium this weekend. Tranent beat Caledonian Braves 2-1 last weekend with this squad at their disposal. Cammy McKinley opened the scoring 10 minutes before the break, drilling in from 10 yards following a long throw. The Braves squared the game early in the second half before a 94th minute header by Danny Handling secured the points. Euan Bauld was MotM in this one. Tranent got to the third round by beating Pollock 3-0 in the first round and disposing of Dundee North End by the same score in round two. More from Mantis: The manager is Robbie Horn, who took Bonnyrigg into the SPFL. They have a few players with SPFL experience. Dean Brett (#14) is the right wingback and at 32 has a lot of experience, having made 149 appearances for Cowdenbeath before getting sacked for gambling offences and stepping down to the LL with Bonnyrigg. Midfielder Danny Handling made 55 appearances for Hibs. They also have Reece Mullen, on loan from Alloa. Top scorers up till present date are Harry Girdwood (#12) with 12 and Cameron McKinley(#9) with 11. Mantis saw them once this season when they were hammered 5-0 by Clydebank although they had 10 men for most of the game. Last week they defeated Caledonian Braves 2-1 with the following team. They are having a decent season and wins breed confidence of which there is plenty around Foresters Park at the moment, and rightly so! 1 Kelby Mason 2 Sam Young 3 Robbie McIntyre 8 Sam Jones 9 Cameron McKinley 12 Harry Girdwood 15 Dean Brett 19 Josh Grigor 21 Ben Miller 23 Conor Doan 24 Euan Bauld Tranent v Bankies Pie Forrit

Tongue in cheek maybe, but harsh. If the same comment was made from the opposite perspective, certain individuals would be screaming Central Beltism 😂The pitch is as good as any in the Highland league. The pavilion is a recent build, along with the floodlit Astro next door. The team has a few ex pros and is near the top of tier 5 in a league that has overtaken the Highland in depth of quality. The only obstacle to a Bronze licence for SPFL entry is that the pitch is too narrow by about 1.5 metres which I hope doesn’t affect our own players tomorrow.

8am pitch inspection to take place due to water on the surface of the pitch. Fingers crossed!