A record crowd of 571 turned up in the Millfield sunshine to see Conference A champions Haddington play their final home match of the season against Edinburgh United. There was a real carnival atmosphere with four pipers from Haddington Pipe Band and a tremendous turnout of teams from the Youth Section who acted as mascots and formed the longest guard of honour ever seen! The Haddington ‘ultras’ added to the occasion with their sombreros, beach balls, Hawaiian shirts and drums. The match was dominated by the home side but it took them sometime to break down a stuffy Edinburgh side. A number of good chances fell to top scorer Guy McGarry in the first half but the Edinburgh goalkeeper thwarted him each time, and it was goalless at the break. Nick Aitchieson, starting his first match since March, broke the deadlock with a header in the 60th minute, but it took the intervention of the south side linesman to confirm that his header had crossed the line. Manager Scott Bonar sent on a number of substitutes and one of them, Allysan Jones set up Shaun Hill for a second goal from close range. Another substitute, Robbie King, netted the third before his brother Ross turned the ball into his own net to give United some consolation.
South Scotland MSP Craig Hoy presented the trophy to Shaun Hill and Gabri Auriemma and this kicked off more scenes of joy and to the delight of the supporters, the Haddington players joined them in their celebrations. A fantastic day for the club that will never be forgotten, The backing that the team has received from the town this season has been incredible and Saturday’s bumper crowd took the average home attendance to 240! Heady days indeed.
