Inverness Caley Thistle academy graduate Calum MacKay signs for Highland League outfit Nairn County after trial spells with Forres Mechanics and Elgin City
Nairn County have announced the return of 19-year-old attacking midfielder Calum MacKay to Station Park.
MacKay moves to Nairn for a second time, having spent time on loan with the Highland League outfit last year, following his release from Inverness Caledonian Thistle at the start of this month.
The younger brother of Partick Thistle attacker Daniel made 10 appearances for Caley Thistle this season, most recently as a substitute in the home win over Dumbarton last month.
Since leaving the Caledonian Stadium, he has spent time on trial with Elgin City and Forres Mechanics as well as training with his new club too.
Interim manager Brian Macleod was delighted to have won the race for the talented teen, commenting: "We know what Calum is all about so when he became available, we made our interest known to him right away.
"He knows the club from his time on loan here last season and although there has been some changes, a lot of the players are familiar to him and I enjoyed working with him last season as well.
"We have 11 games left to try to improve our league position and I think Calum can definitely contribute towards that.
“He has only just come out of full time football, so he is still trying to find his way with what he wants to do going forward whether that it is to try to continue to play in the Scottish Leagues next season or do something else. This deal gives him the space to figure that out while getting regular game time.
"He has not played much football this season so he may take a few games to get up to speed but he played as a trialist for Forres in their recent win at Banks O'Dee when we didn't have a game and I am confident he can have a positive impact on our performances. We are all looking forward to seeing him back in a Nairn shirt."
In his loan spell with Nairn last season, MacKay made 23 appearances, scoring twice. In total across his time with Inverness, he made a total of 16 first team appearances, having debuted in the League Cup against Motherwell in August 2022.
Calum continued the MacKay lineage at Nairn, once again following in the footsteps of his father Karl, who turned out at Station Park in the 1990s.