Keith Bray feeling Stornoway connection at Inverness Caley Thistle as pathway from islands to professional football is only growing stronger
Keith Bray believes the pathway for footballers from Stornoway to make a career in the game is becoming stronger all the time.
The 18-year-old is just one of the latest in a string of talents to be given an opportunity at one of Inverness Caledonian Thistle or Ross County after growing up on the islands.
Even in the current Caley Thistle team, both Bray and Adam Mackinnon hail from Tong and went to the same primary school a couple of years apart.
In Bray’s case, he was scouted and signed by ICT while still living in Stornoway, leaving his family behind to move to the Highland capital full time at 16 years old.
Big decisions like that, and the many hours of travelling that went into playing for the Inverness academy beforehand, are all paying off now with Bray having made 20 appearances across all competitions for the Caley Jags this season alone.
“Even though it’s a small place, there have been a lot of good footballers who have come from Stornoway,” Bray explained.
“There are a few boys in the Highland League who were at Ross County before.
“There was always a pathway, and it’s becoming more prominent now for the younger boys.
“It was always a goal for me – hence why I travelled six hours each week to play football. I always wanted to eventually move away, which I had done. That was always the main goal.”
On playing alongside Mackinnon, who is two years older, Bray continued: “It’s so weird. We were in the same primary school, and the same secondary school.
“He was always at Ross County, so I never thought it would happen, but it is quite nice we are both on the same pitch.
“We were never on the same pitch back in Stornoway – and we are now in the same team.
“He was always a couple of age groups ahead. Everyone was on one-year contracts, so it was about getting them, and then looking to get the pro contracts.
“I looked up to him and other boys on the island and wanting to be that as well.”
Annan is a particularly important match, kicking off the challenging week but also with Inverness knowing that they can move within four points of their rivals while still having a game in hand.
“It is a big week, but we’ve just got to take Annan first on Saturday, and then we’ll look ahead to Queen of the South (on Tuesday),” Bray added.
“It is a tough fixture – nobody can deny that – but we want to come out with six points from the two games.
“If that comes, and hopefully it does, we are really trying to look up. We will take each game at a time, and start getting away from relegation.
“It’s a six-pointer. It’s a big game, and for our momentum it would be good if we could win on Saturday.”