LAST Saturday was another date to remember for everyone connected to Kelty Hearts as they were able to party finally with the League Two trophy.

The celebrations, in front of a 903-strong crowd, after an historic season in which Kevin Thomson has guided the team to a second successive promotion, began in earnest after a draw with Forfar Athletic in their final home game of the season.

Thomson, who took the reins at New Central Park last summer after Barry Ferguson left for Alloa Athletic, having led Kelty into the SPFL with victory in the Pyramid play-offs, admitted that it had been a long wait for his players to get their hands on their well-deserved silverware.

They wrapped up the title four games previously, at home to Stenhousemuir last month, and their manager expressed his pride in his squad's achievements when he caught up with Press Sport – but admits he's already thinking about the challenges that League One football next season will present.

"It's what it's all about. I'd need to go and do my due diligence but there's people within our changing room, myself included obviously, that have won silverware through playing careers," Thomson said.

"I said that to them, as part of the team talk, that there are players that don't get an opportunity to win titles or get winners' medals. Things eventually come to an end, however negative that may sound, but when the good moments come along, you have to enjoy it.

"To finally get our hands on something we've been trying to achieve way back – I think on July 9 we played Dundee United, albeit in the Premier Sports Cup, but the first game of the season competitive – to 45 games later, one more to go, it's been a long time coming.

"I want to say we only had three, three-and-a-half weeks to put a team together. We pretty much had a week off before we were almost back to pre-season, so it's been a long year.

"You know the Kelty weather better than anyone – the rain, the sleet, the snow, the wind – it's always cold! People tell me when it's minus one, that's a sunny day in Kelty!

"We've had to embrace the Tuesday and Thursday nights and, I suppose, when you set out to do something, it's always nice to get to the end and get a bit of success, because it's why we all do it. Everybody wants to be a winner.

"I think there was a few emotional guys and women, even the kids, like the new ultras, the people that are starting to be the next generation of the club, seeing success. Hopefully, they've not been too spoiled and think that's what it's like all the time.

"I think, for what the group's achieved this year, and what the club have achieved as a whole on the journey that they've been on – I'm not saying the icing on the cake, because they'll want to go again, everybody wants to keep on trying to push on – but I think, if you have a wee pause to see how far the club's come, and reflecting on just how much the boys have achieved this year, I'm pretty sure there are a lot of people, I would like to say everybody behind the scenes, that's involved in the club, that support the club, that will be delighted with the way it's gone."

Thomson, who joined his squad and backroom staff, as well as members of the club's committee and supporters for their Player of the Year event at the village's Ex-Serviceman's Club after the game, continued: "When I get my winners' medal, and I get a wee feel of that trophy and I stand back and what everybody is celebrating, it brings me a lot of joy.

"I'm stood on that pitch, watching everybody celebrating, thinking how I can win the next one. That's just me as a person; I was the same as a player. I hate standing still.

"I don't overly like the limelight when it comes to success so I suppose the overriding feeling is I'm already focused on thinking about what the next challenge is.

"I've said it numerous times now; we need to walk before we can run. We can't get too carried away with ourselves, but we've had a brilliant season.

"Momentum's big in football but we're not naive. We need to sign again, we'll have players that will be moving on, we'll have players out of contract that won't be getting new contracts, we've maybe got one or two that have probably found game time and opportunities limited this year, so they might look to move on to pastures new. We need to be creative.

"We need to be on the pulse really when it comes to recruitment. I think we got it bang-on this year. We've made mistakes, 100 per cent, but I think the recruitment was very, very good for the calibre of player we've brought to the club.

"We need to look to do at least that again, if not better it, so that will present a big challenge within itself."

As for the game itself, Kelty completed an unbeaten season on their own pitch, having suffered just three defeats on the road ahead of yesterday's final game at Annan Athletic.

Centre back Dougie Hill, who is set to retire, gave the hosts a first-half lead, which was cancelled out early in the second by Stephen Warnock for the play-off-bound Loons.

Although Stefan McCluskey was sent off for Forfar, the points were shared, and Thomson added: "We only actually lost to Dundee United all season at home, which is remarkable really, when you think that we've played St Johnstone, we've played Montrose, we've played East Fife in the Premier Sports Cup, all teams that were a league, if not two or three leagues, above us."