Emotional Barry Ferguson celebrated taking Kelty Hearts into the SPFL - and the Rangers hero claimed it was up there with the greatest moments in his career.
Ferguson’s Lowland League champions won their long-awaited ‘on-off’ League Two play-off with Brechin City 3-1 on aggregate to take their place in the professional set-up for the first time.
But Brechin’s on-loan Ibrox youngster Chris McKee is facing an SFA probe after being sent off for foul and abusive language understood to be of a homophobic nature.
It was a controversial moment in a horror day for City that sees them tumble out of the Scottish league for the first time in their history.
The 40th minute red card was just one of a number of flashpoints in a bruising encounter that saw Kelty also reduced to 10 men in the closing stages when Scott Hooper was sent off for a two-footed lunge.
Kelty skipper Michael Tidser slammed home in the 88th minute for the only goal of the second leg to spark wild scenes as Ferguson joined a corner flag pile-on.
And the jubilant ex- Rangers and Scotland skipper beamed: “It’s amazing. What an achievement.
“A lot of people were surprised I took this job 33 months ago but I knew if I was given the tools to make a go of it.
“This is up there with everything I’ve done in football, 100 per cent. It’s got to be.
“I know people will say ‘is he having a laugh?’ But the amount of work the players and I have put in to get here, it’s a brilliant achievement. They are a brilliant group and nobody can deny we deserve to be an SPFL club.
“This will live with me forever.
“If I’m being honest four weeks ago I didn’t think this would happen. When we were denied getting back training, and even when we were declared champions I only had two and a half weeks to work with the players before we played Brora Rangers.
“At a certain stage I thought the dream was over but the dream has been made. We are in the SPFL and it’s brilliant.”
Meanwhile gutted Brechin boss Michael Paton said teenage forward McKee was in tears after his red card.
He said: “I haven’t got the chance to speak to him as he is in a state, crying in the dressing room. He can’t even get his words out.
“He is bubbling and he isn’t wanting to talk to anyone so I don’t know what he said.
“But for the referee to show him a straight red card then it must be something clear enough and something that shouldn’t have been said.”
Paton added: “This club will come back bigger, stronger and better.”
