An old rivalry will be reignited on Saturday afternoon as Bonnyrigg Rose welcome Newtongrange Star to New Dundas Park in the first round of the Soccer Shop Challenge Cup.

It will be the first meeting of the local adversaries since the 2018 Fife and Lothians Cup final, a 5-1 win for the Rose at Penicuik Park that also marked both sides’ last game as part of the junior set up.

Newtongrange head coach Wes Mitchell has been busy over the summer bringing in new recruits as Star look to improve on last season’s campaign, in which they finished bottom of the East of Scotland Premier Division on a points per game basis.

Star have picked up a point in their opening three league fixtures, a draw at home to Camelon on the opening day was followed by a 3-2 defeat away to Tranent and a 3-0 loss at Broxburn Athletic last weekend.

The Rose have started their season brightly, picking up maximum points so far in the Lowland League without having conceded a goal in any of the three games.

Manager Robbie Horn will be happy with the defensive displays so far this season, but also delighted with the variety of goals scorers in the Rose side. Nine Bonnyrigg goals in the league have come from eight different players hitting the back of the net, including an own goal in last week’s 3-0 win over Gretna 2008.

Saturday’s matchup will also see three players face the side from which they joined the Rose, as Lee Currie, Neil Martyniuk, and George Hunter take on their former club. In the Star squad, Adam Nelson, Kevin Bracks, Craig O'Reilly, and Sean Brennan have all previously donned the red and white.

The winner of this tie will travel to New Western Park to take on WOSFL side Renfrew in the second round of the cup on Saturday 21st November.

The game is available to view for non-season ticket holders/Star fans/neutrals for the virtual ticket price of £5. For more details on how to watch the game, click here.

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