Broughty
Athletic FC is a Scottish football club from the seaside resort of Broughty
Ferry, located a few miles east of Dundee. Athletic were formed in 1920 as Broughty Ex Servicemen before changing to their present title in 1951 when they also moved to a new home at Claypotts Park.
In 1989, the
ground was renamed Whitton Park in recognition of former player and club
official Eddie Whitton, who passed away that year. 2000-01 saw the side lift the Tayside Region Division One title, remaining in the Premier Division until the end of the 2004-05 campaign.
In
2006-07, the SJFA restructured their leagues and placed ‘The Fed’ in the East
Region North Division. Athletic narrowly missed out on promotion in 2007-08 and
2008-09. However, promotion was achieved to the Premier Division at the culmination of the 2009-10 campaign.
Despite
finishing bottom of the table in 2012-13, the Fed stayed up thanks to league
reconstruction. Hopes were high that a further promotion could be achieved as
the club became part of the Dundee East Community Sports Club Project.
The
Hub was formed of five football clubs, a rugby club, a cricket club, a tennis
and table tennis club, a bowling club, a handball club and a karate club. The
clubs were given use of the facilities at Whitton Park and the nearby Forthill
Sports Club, Douglas Sports Centre and the grass pitches at Dawson and
Claypotts Park.
The
Dundee East Community Sports Club Project benefited from having over 150
qualified coaches and a strong committee. Plans were afoot to improve
facilities at Whitton Park. A new all-weather seven-a-side pitch was opened in
July 2012, with a new stand for the main pitch being planned for 2016.
In
January 2015, Keith Gibson was appointed as the new manager of Athletic, leading the side to the playoffs, where victory against Armadale Thistle led to promotion to the Super League from the Premier Division. Jamie McCunnie came in as manager in late 2017, taking his team to a runners-up spot a few months later.
League reorganisation saw Athletic placed in Super League North for the 2019-20 season, but failed to complete the following two seasons owing to the pandemic. They moved to the SFA East Region Midlands League for 2021-22 with Darren Scott arriving as manager.
His side was in fifth in his debut campaign, followed by finishing as runners-up for the following three seasons.
Broughty
Ferry FC will play in the Midlands Football League in the 2025-26 season.
My
visit
Thursday
22nd January 2015
Having
stayed in the very pleasant Broughty Ferry for the evening after watching the
Dundee v Kilmarnock match the previous evening, I decided that I needed to walk
off my very generous breakfast at the B&B before my train back down south.
Using
a bit of research and the excellent http://nonleaguescotland.org.uk/ website, I headed
uphill towards Claypotts Park. I got slightly wrong on my way and ended up in
Dawson Park, and had to take a detour before eventually finding Whitton Park.
The
ground was locked, but the fencing was low enough to afford me a decent view inside
to take my photos. Whitton
Park was pretty basic with a post and rail fence around the playing area.
The
only buildings came by way of a brick building in a corner behind the goal at
the south end, with container units further along by the entrance offering more
facilities. The installation of the planned stand would make a huge difference
and allow the club to progress to the Super League.
I
headed towards the city of Dundee along Arbroath Road in search of a look at
the home of East Craigie FC.