{"id":180970,"date":"2026-02-26T17:57:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T17:57:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/?p=180970"},"modified":"2026-02-26T18:04:41","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T18:04:41","slug":"johnstone-burgh-complete-scottish-fa-entry-licence-requirements-after-floodlight-switch-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/2026\/02\/26\/johnstone-burgh-complete-scottish-fa-entry-licence-requirements-after-floodlight-switch-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Johnstone Burgh complete Scottish FA entry licence requirements after floodlight switch-on"},"content":{"rendered":"

Johnstone Burgh have completed all the requirements needed for a Scottish FA Entry Level licence, with the switch-on of the new floodlights at Keanie Park marking the final stage of the process.<\/p>\n

The lights were officially switched on ahead of Tuesday night\u2019s match against Auchinleck Talbot by Renfrewshire Provost Lorraine Cameron, alongside members of the club\u2019s 1968 Junior Cup-winning team \u2014 captain George Caughey and Nicky House.<\/p>\n

The moment brought to an end more than two years of work behind the scenes to meet Scottish FA criteria.<\/p>\n

Chairman Brian Williams told supporters the club was marking \u201ca historic moment in the club\u2019s history\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cWe\u2019ve had many firsts in the last 12 months \u2014 winning the Junior Cup back in June for the first time in 56 years. That covers several generations, so that was a really special day.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother first was playing in the Senior Scottish Cup when we played Threave Rovers here back in September. And tonight, in a few minutes, we\u2019ll have another first when we switch on these lights to play the first ever game under the lights at Keanie Park.\u201d<\/p>\n

Williams said the progress followed a plan set out when the current ownership took over.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of you might remember we put a statement out about two and a half years ago when Jack and Scott bought the park and the club. We laid out a few things we wanted to do. People mocked us, but inside the club we knew it was something we could achieve with hard work.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see what we\u2019ve done since then. We have a successful team on the park, and if you\u2019ve been indoors you\u2019ll see the amount of work going on there. The stand is up, and in a few seconds the lights will come on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nPhoto: Burgh’s chairman Brian Williams<\/b>
\nPhoto Credit: Johnstone Burgh<\/span><\/p>\n

He added that the club\u2019s growth had extended beyond the first team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also have a community club. Two and a half years ago we probably had around 200 kids. Now we have over 350.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re more than just a football club now. We do a lot in the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turning to the licence application, Williams said: \u201cAs of yesterday, the paperwork was submitted to the SFA. Once we play this game tonight, that should complete the final requirement.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo Lowland League, ladies and gentlemen, here we come.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Entry Level licence is required for clubs who wish to participate in Scottish FA competitions and is also a key step for clubs with ambitions of progressing through the senior pyramid structure.<\/p>\n

The club confirmed in a statement on its social media that the floodlight switch-on completed the final stage of the process.<\/p>\n

It said: \u201cThe club are delighted to confirm, that following last night\u2019s successful floodlight switch on, the club has completed all the steps required to meet the Scottish FA Entry level criteria.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis follows 2 years of hard work and commitment behind the scenes, and the club now await official confirmation from the Licencing Committee and SFA board, of the granting of the SFA Licence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking during the ceremony, co-owner Jack Henderson said: \u201cIt\u2019s a historic moment for the team and a historic moment for the club.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, the most important aspect has always been the community. Hearing that there are now 350 kids involved is exceptional. This is the next stage in the evolution of Johnstone Burgh.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s happened over the past three years has been incredible, and I\u2019m really excited for the next three years.\u201d<\/p>\n

The club now await formal confirmation from the Licensing Committee and the Scottish FA board on whether the licence will be granted.<\/p>\n

If approved, it would represent one of the most significant off-field achievements in the club\u2019s modern history.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nPhoto: Co-owner of Johnstone Burgh, Jack Henderson<\/strong>
\nPhoto Credit: Johnstone Burgh<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Headline photograph: (From left to right) Burgh chairman Brian Williams, ceremony host Ricky Kelly, former Burgh captain George Caughey, Renfrewshire Provost Lorraine Cameron, former player Nicky House and Burgh co-owner Jack Henderson<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Johnstone Burgh have completed all the requirements needed for a Scottish FA Entry Level licence, with the switch-on of the new floodlights at Keanie Park marking the final stage of the process.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":180972,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-180970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wosfl-premier-division"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo.jpg","featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo.jpg",1665,1110,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-768x512.jpg",640,427,true],"large":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-1024x683.jpg",640,427,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo.jpg",1665,1110,false],"joomsport-thmb-medium":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-310x207.jpg",310,207,true],"rn-home-thumb":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-320x200.jpg",320,200,true],"rn-home-rect":["https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Group-photo-480x300.jpg",480,300,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"Ricky Kelly","author_link":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/author\/mudricky\/"},"category_info":"WoSFL Premier Division<\/a>","tag_info":"WoSFL Premier Division","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180970"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180970\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":180976,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180970\/revisions\/180976"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180972"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/renfrewshire24.co.uk\/sport\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}