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8.11.03
Queen of the South (2) Arbroath (2)
Queen- Murray Brown 57 Graham Connell 76
Arbroath- Barry Lavety 10 Luis Laguardia 64
MOM- Stuart Malcolm, Arbroath

"It would be much easier to earn a good result if we could play good defense. We were atrocious- other than Stuart- in this match," said a frustrated Gond.

"Craig (Wight) held up his end of the bargain- at least earning us a split of the points. You're right though, that was the worst effort from our backline this season."

***

15.11.03
Arbroath (1) Brechin (0)
Arbroath- Barry Lavety 83
Brechin- None
MOM- Thomas Paul Griffiths, Arbroath

"Barry (Lavety) deserved to get that match winner, after losing his goal in the first half on the offside call," remarked Gond.

"He certainly did. John Elliott deserved better also, for all the work he put in- and Ian (Ritchie) also earned a lot of goodwill with a terrific performance."

"It was a tough win to earn, but I know the boys are happy we grabbed this one at the end."

***

22.11.03
Stranraer (0) Arbroath (1)
Stranraer- None
Arbroath- Barry Lavety, 15
MOM- Keith Gallagher, Stranraer

"I think our points that we have been trying to make to them have finally sunk in," mused Faramir.

"Which ones specifically?" asked Gond with a smile.

"Well, what I saw today was our emphasis on defense has taken hold. They have finally bought in to the fact that if you can exert a consistent, determined defensive effort every match- you will have a chance in almost every match. The offensive displays are exciting to produce, but a solid defensive effort will win you close matches like todays."

***

Barry Gond looked at the faxed sheet and cheerily muttered, "One borrowed and one blue..."

Faramir laughed so hard he fell off his chair.

Arbroath Moves Again
Arbroath continues to explore gaining additional players and two more will join the club tomorrow. Arbroath completed the transfer purchase of Spaniard Jose Cano for a small sum from Figueres, where he was unhappy about reduced playing time. In a suprise move they have also loaned promising midfielder James Coppinger from Newcastle until March. Cano is a 24 yr old MC playmaker that will likely provide cover for John Elliott. Coppinger is 22 and will almost certainly have some significant playing time on the club.

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29.11.03
Arbroath (4) Montrose (0)
Arbroath- Barry Lavety 19,26 Jose Cano 48 Danny Spiller 68
Montrose- None
MOM- Barry Lavety, Arbroath

"Nice debut by Cano. Looks like we finally have an alternative to John Elliott in running the offense," declared Gond.

"I hope so, I am wondering how much longer it will be before the Old Firm clubs come sniffing around for John and his minimum fee release. On Coppinger, I have my fingers crossed- actually for Schembri too- I would love to be able to make it attractive enough for them to stay..."

***

"How Much??"

"A wee little bit Barry, only 700K," grinned Faramir.

Dundee Purchases Fallon
In a bid to help their injury depleted backline, Dundee today announced the transfer signing of Arbroath's Steve Fallon. Fallon, who was the skipper for Arbroath last season, had been seeing very little starting time at the new look Division 2 club and was overjoyed to get a chance to jump to the SPL. Arbroath was quite content to accept a substantial (but not announced) transfer amount for Fallon.

***

6.12.03
Arbroath (3) Stenhousemuir (0)
Arbroath- Gareth Munro 23,90 Kieren Burchell 83
Stenhousemuir- None
MOM- Gareth Munro, Arbroath

"I feel sorry for David (Platt) because that loss will likely lose him his job," commented Faramir.

"If you lose 11 straight matches- I think you should assume your job is in severe jeopardy," answered Gond.

***

"Revolving door time Barry."

"What now?"

"Inverness just came through with a bid of 100K for Craig Wight. Considering we have Ian for the future and Craig won't resign a contract, I am going to accept it. I took a quick look at our shortlist and made an offer on Ayr's Brian Hamilton to be Ian's backup- they accepted 20K, and I am certain he will accept the contract offer."

"Merry-go-round then..."

Arbroath's Switching Keepers
Arbroath today announced they had accepted a transfer offer from Inverness Caledonian Thistle for keeper Craig Wight. With Ian Ritchie apparently holding the starter's job, they were willing to accept the 'substantial' bid from Inverness. They seemingly turned around and splashed a portion of that bid back out as they announced the transfer purchase of 22 yr old Brian Hamilton from Ayr to become the backup keeper.

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20.12.03
Arbroath (2) Cowdenbeath (1)
Arbroath- Gary Shearer 21,28
Cowdenbeath- Steven Evans 3
MOM- Gary Shearer, Arbroath

"I was a bit worried about Brian's (Hamilton) debut- especially after Evans scored on that shot," said a relieved Gond.

"He did right himself after that, and made several outstanding saves down the stretch- I was pleased with it overall."

"Why did you throw him right into the lineup?"

"I wanted to test him- this seemed like the right club to do that against- they certainly showed more offense today than they had in their last several matches. Good thing Gary (Shearer) came with his sharp shooter glasses on today."

***

27.12.03
Alloa (0) Arbroath (1)
Alloa- None
Arbroath- James Coppinger 4
MOM- Angelo Schembri (II), Arbroath

"Good thing Coppy (James Coppinger) got that first goal, we misfired a lot today," stated Gond.

"Barry (Lavety) should have had several goals, but his aim was just a wee bit off today. It was a good effort and I was very pleased with the steady work that Ian (Ritchie) gave us in net today."

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"That's a lot- might be one of the most expensive purchases ever for this club," whistled Gond.

"He's worth it. I like our forwards a lot, but he is an EPL class level player and other than Lavety, I don't know if ours will really pan out above Division 2."

Arbroath Splashes Big for Rankin
Arbroath has been building an impressive war chest of transfer funds for months now and they finally went out and used some of those funds in announcing the transfer purchase of forward Isaiah Rankin from Barnsley for around 230K. The 25 yr old SC hadn't been used much and was looking for a good opportunity to gain playing time. He will certainly be featured soon in the starting lineup for Arbroath.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Scottish Second Division - Wednesday 31st December 2003********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2003/4 Table============================================= ================================================== =Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st Arbroath 19 9 1 0 29 6 7 1 1 21 5 50 2nd Berwick 19 6 2 1 16 9 4 2 4 15 15 34 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3rd Brechin 19 8 0 2 22 8 1 3 5 11 14 30 4th Queen of Sth. 19 3 6 1 17 15 2 5 2 8 9 26 5th Stranraer 19 5 3 2 18 15 1 4 4 10 14 25 6th Alloa 19 5 1 3 13 11 2 2 6 13 20 24 7th Forfar 19 3 3 4 12 14 2 3 4 19 23 21 8th Cowdenbeath 19 3 3 3 14 17 2 3 5 13 17 21 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------9th Montrose 19 3 3 3 15 16 2 2 6 9 20 20 10th Stenhousemuir 19 1 3 5 10 19 1 0 9 11 29 9 </pre>

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3.1.04
Arbroath (4) Cowdenbeath (0) Scottish Cup 2nd round
Arbroath- Michael Moore 15 Barry Lavety 25 Jose Cano 30 Luis Laguardia 64
Cowdenbeath- None
MOM- Chris Jackson, Arbroath

"Good show for the Gayfield crowd, wasn't it?" asked Gond.

"They certainly got to see a lot of our offensive capability. Chris (Jackson) deserved his MOM honours for the job he did in directing the offense. We did an excellent job keeping their forwards marked out."

"I thought you planned on featuring Isaiah Rankin today?"

"He hasn't seen enough practice time with us yet. I want to work him in soon, but have him completely familiar with our approach when he plays."

***

5.1.04
Berwick (1) Arbroath (4)
Berwick- Paul Patterson 51
Arbroath- John Elliott 36 Thomas Paul Griffiths 39-P James Coppinger 53 Gareth Munro 74
MOM- John Elliott, Arbroath

"That was a fine match for us. They were really looking to knock us down a peg, but the boys really kept them under pressure throughout the match," stated a pleased Faramir.

"It was great to see Coppy (James Coppinger) starting to fit in so well- he really performed well today."

"I think the fact he played so well kept them from leaning so hard on John (Elliott)- that is the best he has played in quite a few matches."

"Did you realize that he broke the club record with that MOM today?"

"No, I didn't. Five is a record? They must not have had many quality players before this..."

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"The trimming continues?"

"He wasn't going to help us- and was starting to become unhappy about not starting," answered Faramir.

McInally Moves to St.Johnstone
Winger David McInally was sold to St.Johnstone today for a reported purchase price of 275K sources at Arbroath confirmed. McInally, who had been a regular last season, had only been infrequently featured this season and the parting was to the mutual satisfaction of McInally and the club.

***

"How did you manage that?" asked Gond in wonder.

"Offering him as much as I could on weekly wage, a minimum fee release and a pretty large signing bonus. He is worth it and I hope next season to rework the contract with a higher min fee release. It's still a bit of a gamble, given the release and how much the tribunal says we pay for him- but we have enough funds to make the gamble."

Arbroath Signs Coppinger
In an extremely surprising move, Arbroath was able to convince loaned James Coppinger to sign a contract that will become effective on June 28th. Coppinger, a 23 yr old AMFC who originally came on loan from Newcastle until the end of March, surprised many pundits with his willingness to sign with Arbroath. He discussed his reasons, stating that "he was excited at the direction of the club and impressed with the kind of commitment that allowed Arbroath to bring highly regarded striker Isaiah Rankin to the club. Reportedly the tribunal set the compensation to Newcastle at 500K and there are rumours of a very substantial signing bonus awarded to Coppinger- which likely makes the total cost of the signing at least 800K.

***

Ross County Purchases McColligan
Arbroath announced today that they had accepted a transfer offer on winger Brian McColligan. The 23 yr old AML had been a regular last season at Arbroath, but had been a regular on the reserve side this season. He was reportedly happy about the chance to move to a club where he might gain more senior side time.

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17.1.04
Brechin (3) Arbroath (5)
Brechin- Mark McLauchlan 3,68 Barry McColl 75
Arbroath- John Elliott 2 Barry Lavety 15 Isaiah Rankin 70 Luis Laguardia 76,79
MOM- John Elliott, Arbroath

Gond shook his head while glancing at the stat sheet, "I guess you just have to outscore them sometimes..."

"Well, if Ian (Ritchie) doesn't have that one bad spell, this would have been an easy win. Still, I can't be too hard on him- he had been playing very well before those two goals. Our defensive coverage wasn't nearly as good as usual."

"I think we were trying to jump into the attack too much. We were forcing the play too much."

***

24.1.04
Arbroath (4) Stranraer (0)
Abroath- John Elliott 4,16,68 Kieren Burchell 9
Stranraer- None
MOM- John Elliott, Arbroath

"Very impressive performance from John," smiled Gond.

"There is a downside though- he is starting to get noticed by the bigger clubs. He has already told me he wants to move to a bigger club, so if any of them meets the min fee release on him, he will be gone."

"That would be disappointing, but understandable."

"Mark Wilson has also told me more or less the same thing- he wants to move to a bigger club."

"Is there anyone interested in either of them?"

"Not specifically. Not yet at least. I expect we will see more scouts since our success this season is starting to draw press coverage."

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31.1.04
Morton (1) Arbroath (3) Scottish Cup 3rd round
Morton- Emilio Bottiglieri 25
Arbroath- Francisco David Sousa 3 John Elliott 44 Isaiah Rankin 69

"You know, it is pretty funny to see a Division 2 club going to visit a Division 1 club in a Cup match and see the odds be even," chuckled Barry Gond as he read through the paper.

"Bookmakers are realistic," grinned Faramir. "Pretty hard to ignore how well we were playing coming into the match- nor the fact that we likely have better personnel than Morton has."

"I think we proved that out just fine- 20 shots was quite a barrage on Craig Coyle."

***

"Newcastle is going to get tired of hearing from you," said Gond with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"Our money is as good as anyone else's," smiled Faramir. "Still, he wouldn't have agreed to come here if Coppy (James Coppinger) hadn't already committed to coming..."

Arbroath Buys Boyd
Arbroath announced the transfer purchase of midfielder Mark Boyd from Newcastle today. Boyd, a 22 yr old AMC out of the Newcastle youth program, agreed to a contract with Arbroath and was apparently very happy to rejoin teammate James Coppinger in the Arbroath midfield mixture. Boyd will likely see playing time on the senior side after a bit of training. The reported purchase price to bring the youngster was around 100K.

***

7.2.04
Forfar (1) Arbroath (4)
Forfar- Stuart Harvey 4
Arbroath- Barry Lavety 28 Stuart Malcolm 61 John Elliott 66 James Coppinger 90
MOM- James Coppinger, Arbroath

"It might have been a different match if John Duffy hadn't gotten that 2nd yellow card to open the second half," commented a relieved Gond.

"At least the boys were able to take full advantage of it- they really kept up the pressure after that. Stuart (Malcolm) picked a very opportune time to score his 1st for us."

"Elliott's goal was a big one too- that took the fight out of them."

"With his acceleration and pace- there aren't too many players who can match up with him in Division 2- his goal also broke the scoring record for one season -- 16 now."

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14.2.04
Arbroath (4) Queen of the South (1)
Arbroath- Kieren Burchell 5,62 Mark Boyd 24 James Coppinger 50
Queen- James Woods 26
MOM- Mark Boyd, Arbroath

"I thought you were a bit touched when you told me that Mark (Boyd) reminded you of Mark Kerr- but you were right," said Gond as he shook his head.

"He is not as polished as Mark Kerr- yet, but he is completely smooth out there- great technical skill in the way he does everything. Not only that, but he is team leader- something I couldn't really say of Kerr."

"Well, Kerr is still younger than him too- to be fair."

"True, I had forgotten how young he was when he came to prominence with us at Dundee United. I feel we have the makings of a great midfield though- with Boyd there now too."

***

21.2.04
St.Johnstone (2) Arbroath (3) Scottish Cup 4th round
St.Johnstone- Ross Matheson 20 Grant Murray 71
Arbroath- Barry Lavety 33 Isaiah Rankin 36 Luis Laguardia 63
MOM- Shaun McSkimming, St.Johnstone

"That was an interesting match," commented Gond.

"You think so?" grinned Faramir. "I thought it was a bit harrowing- especially at the end. Fortunately, Ian (Ritchie) was very solid down the final minutes."

"He was. Our backline didn't play nearly as well as I have seen them in other matches though."

"There backline didn't play all that well either, at least we took better advantage of our chances today."

"That was the difference in the match- getting those two goals within 3 minutes by Barry (Lavety) and Isaiah (Rankin) really changed the nature of the match."

"We got the booby prize though- our 5th round opponent is Rangers."

Gond winced and shook his head in resignation.

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25.2.04
Cowdenbeath (1) Arbroath (4)
Cowdenbeath- Stewart McCall 10-P
Arbroath- Isaiah Rankin 25 Barry Lavety 51 Danny Spiller 59-P Mark Boyd 69
MOM- Ruben Hazell, Arbroath

"We weren't very sharp in the early going and that penalty was caused by a bad judgement on when to force the play," grumbled Gond.

"The luxury of having forwards the caliber of ours is that they are good at making the other club pay when they don't cover well- and Isaiah certainly did that. Once we evened the match, we played more relaxed and a lot better the rest of the way."

***

28.2.04
Arbroath (1) Alloa (1)
Arbroath- Thomas Paul Griffiths 8-P
Alloa- Stewart Bovill 9-P
MOM- Stewart Bovill, Alloa

"I guess we were due for that type of match," sighed Gond.

"Our effort would be graded very lacklustre. We didn't move the ball very well at all and sat back too much on defense. Ian (Ritchie) kept this one from becoming a loss."

"What's really strange is that we clinched promotion to Division 1 with one of our poorest performances."

"True, but it is very nice to have promotion in hand with 10 matches remaining."