Andrew MacLeod, the pride of Scotland born on that cold winter's day of 31st January 2005, is known these days as the sturdy midfielder making waves at Ross County with his number 33 jersey donned tightly on his back. Balancing his 5ft 11in (1.82m) height, weighing a Stonehenge of 11st (70kg), one can't help but admire the tenacity of this lad.
Now brace yourself here, he's only got a mere seven months left on the chopping clock before his contract with Ross County bites the dust, slated to expire on the glorious last day of May 2025. The ticking time bomb puts a bit of a twist on your average Scottish soap opera, doesn't it?
Our boy's journey, brimming with consistency and a blatant disregard for comfort, started seeing significant mileage in July 2020. In a bold act of self-improvement, or perhaps a moment of youthful foolishness, MacLeod took a leap of faith into the rough waters of the Premiership with Ross County.
Fast forward a wee bit to the dawn of 2023 where it seems like MacLeod thought to himself "why not-mix it up?" and off he went, trotting down to Brora Rangers in the Highland League on loan. A rather curious change of scenery, but who are we to question it?
Yet, in the heat of the Scottish, ahem, summer of 2023, MacLeod decides he's had enough of the Highland League's fair fields and marches back to the heroic Ross County side. A happy homecoming indeed, with tales of victorious skirmishes against plucky local sides that would surely be sung in the locker room showers on his return. Yet, not waiting to grow complacent in his journey of self-discovery, by July 2023, he was once again wearing the loan ranger hat, this time at Nairn County.
Ah, the vagabond life didn't last past the first month of 2024, and yet again, our wandering midfielder returns to Ross County. One cannot help but be reminded of the yo-yoing trajectory of his career. And yet, as the old saying goes, if you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's, well, a status-quo professional football contract scenario. That's how the saying goes, right?
Nevertheless, amidst the check-in-check-out routine, the lad managed to rise to the occasion for the League Cup 2024 - 2025, making a noteworthy two starts and two appearances from the elegant warmth of the substitutes bench, our boy MacLeod managed to shine.
