GRETNA midfielder Gavin Skelton admits the club's slide towards oblivion has been hard to accept.
Tonight's match against Hearts in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League could be Gretna's last as the administrators prepare to close down the club at the weekend, unless a buyer can be found.
Skelton, 27, joined Gretna in 2001, before they were admi
tted to the Scottish Football League, and helped the Black and Whites rise to the SPL and a Scottish Cup Final. But with hopes fading that the already-relegated club can be saved, Skelton is set to make his final Gretna appearance in the final match of their season.
"Once the season is over and I sit down and reflect on things, it might sink in," he said.
"Everything has moved very quickly in the last couple of months so it's been hard to digest it all. I've tried to concentrate on playing but you're always hearing rumours or reading things in the paper.
"I don't know what will happen and time is obviously running out but I hope it's positive news and not the end. A lot of hard work has gone in to get us where we are today so it would be a shame to see it all go to waste.
"I'm very lucky because the club has achieved more in the last five years than most do in 50 and it's been amazing to have played a part in it. People say enjoy the good times because they don't last and that is certainly true."
The Fir Park game has been moved forward as part of the SPL fixture rescheduling which followed Rangers' achievement in reaching tomorrow's UEFA Cup final. And Gretna fans' chief Craig Williamson has predicted tearful scenes at the end of what could be the stricken club's last game.
Administrators Wilson Field, who are running the crisis club, have set a Saturday deadline for any takeover bid.
Williamson, chairman of the Gretna Supporters' Society, admits emotions will run high among loyal fans. He said: "It will be a sad occasion, I'm sure some of the more emotional fans will have a tear in their eyes.
"It is obviously going to be their last game in the SPL but it will be a really sad occasion if this is the last ever game that Gretna Football Club play."
The full article contains 397 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
