Huntly Football Club was established in 1928. and was admitted to the Highland Football League that same year. By their second season, they had won the league title. But this early success was not indicative of the club’s future form. Over the next six decades, Huntly would win two Highland League Cups and two Aberdeenshire Cups, but another league title evaded them.

The 1990s proved to be the club’s most successful decade to date. In 1992, they won the Aberdeenshire Cup and in 1993, they won both the Highland League Cup and the Scottish Qualifying Cup (North). The following season, Huntly secured the Highland League title for the first time in 64 years. This triumph was accompanied by their second consecutive Highland League Cup and another Aberdeenshire Cup – a Highland treble. The club would go on to win a record five consecutive Highland League titles (1993/94, 1994/95, 1995/96, 1996/97, 1997/98), during which time they also won an additional Highland League Cup (1995/96), three consecutive Aberdeenshire Cups (1993/94, 1994/95, 1995/96) and two Scottish Qualifying Cups (North) (1994/95, 1996/97). The club would add to their silverware tally in the 1999/2000 season, winning one more Aberdeenshire Cup and one more Scottish Qualifying Cup (North). Huntly’s most recent Highland League title came in 2005.

The current Huntly badge (and the overall Huntly colour scheme) is derived from the black and gold heraldic blazon of the Stewart Earls of Atholl (who were the Lords of Strathbogie, the former name of Huntly, in the Middle Ages). The stylised stag’s head comes from the arms of the Earl (and later, Marquess) of Huntly. For my redesign, I sought to keep the main features of the current badge, but to bring it into compliance with the heraldic laws of Scotland by removing the club’s initials from the shield itself. Although the stylised stag’s head is a striking design feature, my mind interprets the ears as the stag’s eyes. I decided to make a more anatomically accurate stag’s head for my redesign. The laurel wreath and five stars represent Huntly’s dominant form in the 1990s and standing record of five consecutive Highland League championships.