MUSSELBURGH Athletic legend Mathu King has broken the club’s appearance record.

King’s name was already cemented in the club’s folklore as their all-time record goalscorer, with 145.

But the veteran forward broke a second club record on Saturday as he donned the Burgh colours for the 286th time at Thornton Hibs.

His latest appearance saw King surpass the previous record held by Johnny Combe, who played 285 games for Athletic between 1992 and 2005.

And 34-year-old King, who first joined the club from Arbroath just over a decade ago, was delighted.

He told Courier Sport: “I’ve not thought too much about it – we’ve been taking one game at a time. It is a good achievement though and something I am quite proud of.”

The striker, who was on the books at Hearts after leaving school and also counts Forfar among his former clubs, admitted he arrived at Burgh only looking to recover from a serious injury.

He said: “I came, first of all, looking to get fit after a cruciate knee injury – never did I think I’d be here 10 years later, but here we are.”

The Wallyford resident picked out the club’s East Premier League win in 2008/2009 and the Scottish Junior Cup run of 2011, where Burgh reached the final but lost to Auchinleck Talbot, among the highlights so far, adding: “This season has been pretty good, and it’s hopefully going to get better this weekend.”

The Burgh need just a point at home to Dalkeith Thistle to clinch the East Premier League title for a second time.

King added: “Obviously the result [of the Junior Cup final] in 2011 wasn’t what we wanted but it was a great experience and we had a good run getting there.

“I left in 2013 and had two years at Newtongrange so I missed the 2015 Junior Cup final which was disappointing but it’s just one of those things.”

King, who works for Virgin Trains, said that he hopes to keep playing next season.

When asked if he plans to hang up his boots, he said: “I don’t think so – I’ll see how I feel at the end of the season.

Calvin Shand, Musselburgh Athletic boss for the last two-and-a-half years, praised King for his record-breaking achievement.

He told Courier Sport: “It is a remarkable achievement and one Mathu should be really proud of.

“He gives his all every time he pulls the jersey on and the club are lucky to have him.”

If selected for appearance number 287 on Saturday, it could be another memorable one for King as he and his Burgh team-mates could clinch the title in front of the Olive Bank faithful.