retired_confal2

I didn't realize it was all actually true :eek:

Great article though

retired_amyslack

October 2004

Friday 1st
Henry Hall of Montrose lifted the Manager of the Month award and saw his young central defender Neil Stephen take the Young Players gong and the senior prize went to Elgin’s left winger Andy Roddie. We closed another transfer deal too with 21-year-old left midfielder Ciaran Ryan agreeing a £65K move from Bolton.

Saturday 2nd
The visit of East Stirling gave us a golden opportunity to get a much-needed win and we were in total control of the game. But with 70 minutes on the clock the game was still scoreless and we badly needed some inspiration. It came in the shape of substitute Ryan Baldacchino and his arrival transformed the game. His pace and control caused havoc in the visitor’s defence and he scored the only goal of the game with 5 minutes remaining. Peterhead moved back to the top of the table after their 3-1 win at Queen’s Park and we remained 5th but were just three points off the pace.

Wednesday 6th
We travelled to Fir Park to play Motherwell in the 2nd round of the League Cup and I put out as strong a team as I could. We battled hard all game entering the last ten minutes the score was still even. But then the home side scored what everyone felt would be the winning goal. They hadn’t counted on our fighting spirit though and within a minute we were even again when midfielder Mark Boyd latched on to a long clearance from Main to fire home. Tiring rapidly we held on for the remaining few minutes to force extra time. I threw on as many fresh pairs of legs as I could to shore things up and we made it through the extra half hour still on terms before just missing out in the penalty shootout. It was a brave performance by the lads and we certainly did ourselves proud.

Saturday 9th
The national team were in action and gave their World Cup campaign a huge boost with a 3-1 win at home to Norway. The Scots recovered from a one-goal deficit to gain a crucial win that re-kindles their hopes of getting into the playoffs.

Wednesday 13th
Scotland travelled to Moldova for their 3rd game in their qualifying group and conceded a late equaliser to deny them a vital win. They were now in 4th place in the group but had played a game less that the teams above them.

Saturday 16th
For the trip to Stenhousemuir, David Bingham had recovered sufficient fitness to make the trip but he would not be risked in the starting eleven but was named amongst the substitutes. We had the better of the opening exchanges and Andy Smith gave us the perfect start with a goal after just two minutes. But the home side started to make inroads into our defence and equalised on the half hour. Worse was to follow when they took the lead a few minutes before half time. I made a few changes during the break, both enforced and voluntary. Smith was struggling with a knock so he was replaced by Stevens. David Holdsworth was being run ragged in the centre of defence so I brought young Martin Bell on instead. The final change was to replace a struggling Baldacchino with Bingham. This left me no further options for the second period but the changes seemed to do the trick and we looked much sharper. Stephen Cosgrove scored a well-worked equaliser with around 20 minutes remaining. Then 10 minutes later Stevens was tripped in the area and the referee decided that it was a professional foul and the culprit was dismissed. Full back Lee Maddison converted the resulting spot kick to complete our recovery and give us a 3-2 win. Mark Boyd was voted Man of the Match for his sterling performance in our midfield.

Tuesday 19th
Celtic returned from the Bernabeu with a respectable 1-1 draw in the 3rd of their Champions League group games. They took the lead midway through the first half with a John Hartson goal but Real Madrid pegged them back just before the break through David Beckham.

Wednesday 20th
Rangers moved to the top of their group after an excellent 1-0 win at Valencia. Shota Averladze fired them in front after quarter of an hour and they could thank keeper Stefan Klos for the win as his Man of the Match performance kept the Spaniards at bay for the remainder of the game.

Saturday 23rd
We travelled to Glasgow for our game at bottom of the table Queen’s Park confident of a win and we got off to a good start with a goal from Stephen Cosgrove inside the first ten minutes. By my estimate we went on to have a further 20 scoring efforts, almost all of which failed to hit the target. Fortunately our opponents were poor and rarely troubled us at the back and we got the win that I expected. I am pleased that we are making chances but concerned about our inability to put them away. East Fife and Peterhead both drew their games and the win kept us in third but we closed the gap to just one point.

Saturday 30th
Our goal-shyness showed no signs of improvement when we entertained Cowdenbeath but at least in this game we were hitting the target. This time it was visiting keeper Andy Carlin, later voted Man of the Match, that was our problem. We finally got the winning goal in stoppage time when substitute Baldacchino, on for a tiring Bingham, fired home after a neat interchange on the edge of the area. Peterhead dropped points in a 3-3 draw at Albion Rovers and only goal difference now kept us behind leaders East Fife.

Sunday 31st
Ayr manager Mark Shanks became the first managerial candidate of the season as he paid the price for his team’s poor showing in the Second Division. According to the press, St. Johnstone Assistant Manager Jim Weir is favourite to replace him.

retired_amyslack

November 2004

Monday 1st
With our 100% league record last month it was no great surprise when I received the Manager of the Month award with midfielder Mark Boyd also recognised on the playing side. Albion Rovers youngster Paul McManus took the junior prize.

Tuesday 2nd
Rangers did the double over Valencia and their 1-0 win in Glasgow has moved them to the top of their group and into pole position to go through to the knockout stage.

Wednesday 3rd
Celtic are not faring as well as their neighbours and they failed to overcome Spanish opposition, losing 2-0 to Real Madrid at Celtic Park. Beckham and Figo did the damage, both scoring in the first 15 minutes. The big upset of the night in the 3rd round of the League Cup was the defeat of Premiership side Kilmarnock who lost 3-1 at Second Division Forfar.

Sunday 7th
Having taken us all the way to the final it was only fair that the second string should take to the pitch when we faced East Fife in the Challenge Cup. After a very good 3-0 win I was wondering if I should play that lineup for the rest of the season! Davie Irons, Ian Cummersky and John Hore all got their names on the scoresheet, allowing captain for the day Alan Main to proudly lift the cup.

Tuesday 9th
Peterhead manager Iain Stewart, never one to miss a chance of sounding off for the press, has been telling anyone who will listen that his team will win our forthcoming encounter. I decided to maintain a diplomatic silence, preferring instead to use his comments to gee up the players and let them do my talking on the pitch.

Wednesday 10th
Unfortunately the players failed to rise to the challenge and we lost a tight game by the narrowest of margins, Peterhead winning 1-0 to move to the top of the table. Even though I knew it had to come sometime it was still a disappointing way to lose our unbeaten record.

Sunday 14th
It was a busy day on the job front today with Clyde manager Billy Reid and Dundee United boss Ian McCall both dismissed. With United propping up the SPL it was no great shock to see a change and there are a host of big names being linked with the club. Walter Smith is the bookies favourite but Gordon Strachan, Craig Brown and Kevin McAllister are all in the frame.

Saturday 20th
There was a huge upset in the League Cup today with Airdrie United beating Rangers 2-1 in the 3rd round. A full-strength Rangers side took an early lead but the home side fought back bravely to complete a major giant killing act.

Tuesday 23rd
Celtic’s penultimate Champions League group match finished all square as they fought out a 2-2 draw at Rosenborg. The came back from a goal down to take the lead but the Norwegians made a comeback of their own to secure a point. Chelsea and Real Madrid both secured their qualification and the Celts now need a good result in their last game to grab a UEFA Cup slot.

Wednesday 24th
We bounced back from the disappointment of our first loss of the season with a decent 2-0 win at home to Montrose. Stephen Cosgrove and David Bingham were both on target in the first half but with slightly more accurate finishing then we would have had a much more flattering scoreline. Rangers and Leverkusen played out a goalless draw in Germany, a result that ensures they both qualified from their Champions League group.

Saturday 27th
Our winning streak proved to be short lived as we returned from our visit to Albion Rovers on the wrong end of a 2-0 scoreline. With a number of key players rested, their replacements failed to perform to the level I had hoped. Our opponents leapfrogged above us into 2nd as we dropped down a place.

Sunday 28th
Just a ay after leading his team to victory over us, Albion boss Kevin McAllister was unveiled as the new Dundee United manager.

Tuesday 30th
Recently sacked by Clyde, Billy Reid quickly found new employment when it was announced that he had been instated as the new Ayr United boss.

retired_amyslack

December 2004

Wednesday 1st
Keith Wright of Cowdenbeath was November’s Manager of the Month with his own John-Paul Kelly and Joe Boyle of Albion Rovers taking the playing honours.

Friday 3rd
East Fife manager Jim Moffat attempted to engage me in a war of words prior to our forthcoming meeting, stating that his team was confident of beating us but I refused to be drawn and did not respond.

Saturday 4th
On this occasion, the players responded positively to the goading of Moffat and we put in a fine performance at East Fife. Stephen Cosgrove calmed the nerves with an early strike and we dominated the remainder of the half but with no further goals to show for our efforts. I was concerned that we would allow the home side back into the game but I need not have been concerned. Further goals from David Bingham and substitute Ian Stevens gave us a fine 3-0 win and with other results going our way we moved to the top of the table for the first time this season. After the game I couldn’t resist a comment to the local paper explaining that it was clear that we had out-thought our opponents and were tactically superior on the day.

Sunday 5th
Clyde announced the appointment of former Crawley Town boss Francis Vines as their new manager.

Tuesday 7th
Having already qualified for the next stage, Rangers tasted defeat in their final Champions League group game, losing 1-0 at home to Lyon.

Wednesday 8th
Celtic gained their first win in their Champions League group, an early goal from Henri Camara enough to beat Chelsea 1-0 in Glasgow. The result allowed them to take 3rd place in the group and with it a UEFA Cup spot. In the League Cup, Airdrie were unable to repeat their giant killing exploits of the previous round and lost their Quarter Final at Hearts 3-0.

Friday 10th
Porto triumphed in the Inter-Continental Cup, beating Once Caldas of Colombia 1-0 in Yokohama. A crowd of over 70,000 was treated to an open and entertaining game with Porto captain Vitor Baia excelling in goal and lifting the Man of the Match award as well as the trophy.

Saturday 11th
The 1st round of the Scottish Cup took place today and a couple of results were worthy of note. Non-league Coldstream knocked out East Stirling with a 1-0 win at Firs Park and Stenhousemuir had a good 3-1 win at Second Division Arbroath in a game where three players received their marching orders. After the 2nd round draw was completed we found that we would face a home tie against non-league Buckie Thistle.

Wednesday 15th
Our problems in front of goal re-surfaced in the game at home to Elgin as once again we dominated the game but failed to turn chances into goals. After a scoreless first half we took the lead through Jamie McQuilken but as the game wore on I was increasingly concerned that we would pay for not taking our chances. When the visitors got the ball in the net with five minutes remaining my fears were confirmed – until I saw the referee’s assistant signal for offside that was. Buoyed by our lucky escape we immediately went on the offensive again and scored a deserved second through Ian Stevens to ensure a 2-0 win.

Saturday 18th
We travelled to bottom of the table East Stirling confident of gaining a win despite having to make some changes to our starting eleven to rest a few players. Once again we enjoyed a lot of possession and got into good scoring positions on a number of occasions but failed to convert. We were gifted an early goal when Lee Maddison converted from the penalty spot but I continued to be concerned that a one-goal margin did not give any room for error. Fortunately late strikes from substitutes Richard Prokas and Ian Stevens put a gloss on the scoreline, the 3-0 win being a fair reflection of our dominance.

Wednesday 22nd
We were never in any trouble at all during our Scottish cup-tie at home to Buckie Thistle and ran out easy 6-0 winners. Striker Ian Stevens had just turned 38 but he was enjoying a good season and certainly relished his hat trick. Stephen Cosgrove, Mark Boyd and Richard Prokas all got their names on the scoresheet as well as we chalked up a record win for the season thus far. We were presented with another home tie in round three and we will welcome the visit if Second Division outfit Stirling Albion.

Thursday 23rd
Albion Rovers have appointed Jim Weir as their new manager having tempted the 35-year-old to leave the coaching staff at St. Johnstone to try his hand at management.

Saturday 26th
With the players still on a high after our win in the Cup our trip to Cowdenbeath started very brightly with Bingham and Boyd both scoring inside the first quarter of an hour. But when Stephen Cosgrove received his second yellow card midway through the first half the warning bells started to ring. His absence seemed to go unnoticed at first and we moved further ahead through Ian Stevens on 39 minutes. But the home side were starting to exploit the extra man and the pulled a goal back shortly before half time. They started to exert increasing pressure in the second period as we found it increasingly difficult to keep our shape and we were really under the cosh. We conceded again with 15 minutes remaining and then let in a 3rd with just seconds of normal time remaining. The 3-3 draw was disappointing given the size of our lead and even with ten men we should have been able to hang on for the win.

Thursday 30th
It was a hectic day today as I dealt with a number of administrative tasks, chief amongst them being a number of contract renewals for players whose current deals would expire in the summer. Ian Cummersky, David Bingham, Lee Maddison, Alan Main, Derek Townsley and Martin Bell were all offered new deals. I also finalised the signing of young striker Joe Savage from Stenhousemuir for a modest £2K and he would be on board when the transfer window opened in a few days.

I also took time to peruse the league table and have a review of our progress up to this point. It was great to see the team at the top of the table and, despite conceding three goals in our last match we still had the best defensive record in the division. But I was still concerned about our lack of goals and I hoped to be able to bring in some reinforcements to help in this area in the next month.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | GRETNA | | 17 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 24 | 12 | +12 | 33 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | East Fife | | 17 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 26 | 16 | +10 | 31 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | Cowdenbeath | | 17 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 27 | 20 | +7 | 29 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | Peterhead | | 17 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 26 | 24 | +2 | 28 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | Albion | | 17 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 28 | 22 | +6 | 24 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | Stenhousemuir | | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 21 | 26 | -5 | 21 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | Queen's Park | | 17 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 19 | 21 | -2 | 20 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | Montrose | | 17 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 25 | 30 | -5 | 16 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | Elgin | | 17 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 24 | -11 | 16 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | East Stirling | | 17 | 4 | 2 | 11 | 19 | 33 | -14 | 14 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre>

On the playing front Mark Boyd was our highest-rated player thus far, with young Ian Cummersky an able deputy in midfield and the veteran Danny Lennon was influential playing just in front of the back four. Ian Stevens was our highest scorer with 8 goals in all competitions and was now my first choice starter up front.

retired_jgirl87

Another top effort Bob. I really enjoy the particlar way in which you write your stories. You've got me hooked on another one right here. :cool:

retired_amyslack

Thanks Spav - glad you're enjoying it.

January 2005

Saturday 1st
The monthly awards saw your truly gain the managerial plaudits with Queen’s Park pairing of 36-year-old Paul Harvey and 19-year-old Shaun Molloy lifting the playing honours. Jamie McQuilken returned to St. Johnstone at the end of his loan period and we immediately opened negotiations to bring him back in for the rest of the season. Our four new arrivals all turned up at Raydale Park – defenders Peter Ramage and Patrick McCarthy, left-sided midfielder Ciaran Ryan and striker Joe Savage. Ryan went straight into the starting lineup for the visit of Stenhousemuir, with Savage taking a seat on the bench. Ryan made an impressive debut, setting up Bingham for the opening goal with virtually his first touch and going on to gain the Man of the Match award. Bingo went on to score a second midway through the first half and Mark Boyd wrapped up our 3-0 win before half time.

Monday 3rd
St. Johnstone rejected our loan offer for McQuilken, leaving us very short of cover on the left side of defence and midfield.

Saturday 8th
I expected a tough game when we visited Peterhead and that’s exactly what we got. The home side were all over us in the early stages and opened the scoring inside 10 minutes. Fortunately Ian Stevens struck back almost immediately but this did little to subdue the onslaught. On 20 minutes we went behind again but Stevens found another equaliser on the half hour. There was no further scoring but no shortage of incident. Cosgrove suffered another sending off after arguing with the match official following a booking but we were somehow able to hang on for the 2-2 draw.

Saturday 15th
Our Scottish Cup campaign continued with a visit by Stirling Albion and we kept our run going with an excellent 4-1 win. The victory was all the more impressive for the fact that we played the last 20 minutes with a man short after left back Lee Maddison was sent off. Danny Lennon opened the scoring early on with a beautifully placed free kick and Ian Stevens doubled our advantage from the penalty spot before half time. The visitors pulled a goal back on the hour mark and when Maddison was dismissed for a professional foul I feared the worst. But after a hasty re-shuffle we conspired to score twice more through Mark Boyd and substitute Joe Savage. The 4th round draw set us up for a visit to First Division opposition, either Hamilton or St. Mirren depending on the result of their replay.

Wednesday 19th
We hosted Queen’s Park in a midweek league match and got off to a bad start when Alan Main was caught out early on after a speculative shot took a huge deflection off centre back Andy Aitkin and looped into the net. We came back strongly though and Ciaran Ryan scored his first goal for the club ten minutes before half time to square the game. Minutes later Ian Stevens was denied what would have been the winning goal by an offside call. The 1-1 draw allowed chasing East Fife to close the gap to one point. We also found out that we will travel to St. Mirren in the Cup after they won their replay with Hamilton.

Saturday 22nd
For the visit to Montrose I took the risk of playing a pair of debutant centre backs with Ramage and McCarthy both making their debuts. The gamble paid off as they played well together, McCarthy impressing sufficiently to gain Man of the Match honours. New striker Savage opened the scoring early on and we held that slender lead for the bulk of the game. With 15 minutes remaining Bingham gave us some breathing space with our second goal, and as it turned out we needed the cushion as the home side scored ten minutes later. Coupled with a defeat for East Fife, the 2-1 win moved us four points clear at the top of the table.

Saturday 29th
Ian Stevens was the star of the show when we entertained Albion Rovers in our final game of the month. He was on target twice to take his goal tally for the season to 13 and even at 38 he remains a deadly finisher. We still hold a 4-point lead over East Fife and if we can keep our form together we have every chance of gaining promotion at the end of the season.

retired_amyslack

February 2005

Tuesday 1st
Queen’s Park supremo Billy Stark pipped me to the monthly award for Janaury but our own Ciaran Ryan took the young player honour with Elgin City’s David Hind snagging the senior prize. Striker Martin Cameron, out since the start of the season with a serious knee injury, started back in full training today. His return will boost our strike power but it he will need to be eased back into action very gently after such a long layoff.

Saturday 5th
Despite getting off to a dream start in the trip to Elgin with an early goal through a Lee Maddison penalty, our inability to score goals cost us three points as we allowed the home side back into the game. They scored twice in the second half to inflict an undeserved 2-1 defeat and I was none to happy with my players. David Bingham was missing through injury and we seem to lack an adequate replacement for the veteran forward.

Sunday 6th
There was another managerial casualty in Scotland today as Dumbarton dispensed with the services of Brian Fairley.

Saturday 12th
Our Scottish Cup tie at St. Mirren was a closely fought affair and we were the equals of our more illustrious opponents for most of the game. After a goalless first half we were caught napping after the restart and conceded what turned out to be the only goal of the game.

Monday 14th
Cowdenbeath boss Mickey Weir, who has taken his team to second place in our division and made them genuine promotion challengers, was rewarded for his efforts by being offered the Dumbarton position. His new club sit in mid-table in the Second Division and are hoping that the new manager can transform their fortunes.

Wednesday 16th
Martin Cameron made his first start of the season in the home game against strugglers East Stirling as we rang the changes and rested most of our first team. He came through the game unscathed but looked understandably rusty after his long layoff. We got off to a nightmare start, conceding a goal in the first minute and spent the rest of the game trying to retrieve the situation. We finally equalised through Derek Townsley with just three minutes of normal time remaining. With managerless Cowdenbeath winning we now head the table on goal difference and need to get back into winning habits.

Thursday 17th
Celtic were in UEFA Cup action but will be none too happy with the result of their tie as they were held 1-1 in the home leg by Zaragoza of Spain. Stilian Petrov opened the scoring in the first minute but they failed to push home their advantage and conceded a vital away goal in the 77th minute.

Saturday 19th
The crucial promotion clash at home to East Fife turned into a war of attrition as an over-zealous match official threatened to turn the game into a farce. Mr. McKendry flashed the yellow card no less than 10 times, 7 of which were in our direction. Stephen Cosgrove got two and we lost him after an hour. I took off Bingham and brought on Richard Prokas to play on the right of midfield. Within 20 minutes the replacement had been booked twice himself and we were down to ten men. We were desperately defending a one-goal lead given to us by Joe Savage after 20 minutes and we somehow were able to hang on for the win. With Cowdenbeath losing 3-1 at Peterhead our victory took us three points clear of our nearest challengers.

Wednesday 23rd
Rangers face an uphill battle to make further progress in the Champions League after they lost their home leg 2-1 to Ajax.

Thursday 24th
Celtic’s European adventure came to an end in Spain as they lost 1-0 on the night to Zaragoza to go out of the UEFA Cup 2-1 on aggregate.

Saturday 26th
Joe Savage kept his place in the first eleven for the trip to Stenhousemuir and he rewarded us by scoring the only goal in a very tight contest.

retired_amyslack

March 2005

Tuesday 1st
Elgin City boss David Robertson was voted Manager of the month for February with his own Alex Bone recognised as Player of the Month and Bobby Duncan of Peterhead taking the junior award.

Wednesday 2nd
Everyone at Raydale Park was in shock when we heard about the dreadful injury suffered by Joe Savage during a routine training session. A horrible collision with a goalpost has left the youngster with a fracture skull and he will require a long period of rest and rehabilitation to recover.

Saturday 5th
It was first versus second when Cowdenbeath came to town for a game that would have a major bearing on the final promotion places. Ian Stevens regained his starting place in tragic circumstances and the team were determined to do their best for their badly injured comrade. A pretty even contest was decided after half an hour when Ciaran Ryan scored what proved to be the only goal of the game. With Peterhead and East Fife both failing to win their games we now had a very useful cushion between ourselves and the chasing group.

Sunday 6th
There was sensational news from Glasgow today – Celtic manager Martin O’Neill was sacked. With the Hoops 8 points behind deadly rivals Rangers in the title race, the Celtic board had decided that they needed a new man in charge. Everton manager David Moyes is rumoured to be their favoured replacement but Joe Kinnear, Ian McCall and Mark McGhee are also in the running.

Wednesday 9th
The sackings continue apace as Arbroath dismissed Harry Cairney and Stenhousemuir dispensed with the services of Des McKeown. Both of their teams were struggling in their respective divisions and the two men suffered the fate that awaits all football managers. Rangers bowed out of the Champions League after a 2-0 defeat at Ajax left them with a disappointing 4-1 aggregate defeat.

Saturday 12th
We entertained promotion challengers once more as Peterhead came to Raydale Park. Ian Stevens was on target twice in the first half to give us a half-time cushion. The visitors pulled a goal back with just over 10 minutes remaining but a goal from the excellent Derek Townsley a few minutes later sealed an excellent 3-1 win. Townsley, voted Man of the Match for his performance, had been replacing the ill-disciplined Stephen Cosgrove for several games. I moved him up from right back to play on the right of midfield and played young Martin Bell in defence, both to good effect. Cowdenbeath suffered another defeat and we opened up a 9-point gap at the top of the table. In the Quarter Finals of the Scottish Cup, our conquerors St. Mirren pulled off a shock 3-1 win over Dundee United to move into the last four.

Thursday 17th
Sacked by Alloa a month ago, Tom Hendrie has been named as the new Stenhousemuir manager.

Saturday 19th
We made a couple of changes for the trip to Glasgow to play Queen’s Park. Boyd and Maddison were both struggling with training injuries so Cummersky and Gavin Skelton came in to the starting eleven. After a fairly nondescript start to the game we shot into a two-goal lead just before half time with Stevens and Cummersky scoring within minutes of one another. The home side looked stronger after the break and they reduced the deficit on 51 minutes. As we tired late in the game we seemed to lose concentration and Alan Main was forced into action on several occasions and we paid the price when the Spiders equalised deep into stoppage time.

Sunday 20th
The first senior trophy of the season was decided today with Celtic recording a narrow 2-1 win over Hearts in the League Cup Final. In a fairly dire contest all of the goals came in the first 25 minutes and the 50,000 plus at Hampden Park didn’t enjoy much of a spectacle.

Thursday 24th
Celtic announced the appointment of former Everton manager David Moyes as the new man in charge at Parkhead. The fans will be hoping that the 41-year-old can turn the team’s fortunes around although it is probably too late to close the gap on Rangers this season.

Saturday 26th
Like most of the rest of the country the players and staff at Gretna were glued to the TV to watch Scotland in their World Cup qualifier in Italy. But we had little to cheer about as our lads put in a pretty poor performance and the Italians were comfortable 2-0 winners. The result dropped us to 4th place in the group and dented our hopes of a playoff place.

Sunday 27th
Some of the Scottish Sunday papers have been touting our midfielder Mark Boyd as a strong candidate for the Division Three player of the season and I would certainly see him as a contender after his splendid form for us this season. The 23-year-old Englishman has been one of our most consistent performers and would be a deserving winner.

Monday 28th
Former Ayr manager Mark Shanks, out of work since October of last year, is the new man in the hot seat at Arbroath.

retired_amyslack

April 2005

Friday 1st
Jim Weir of Albion Rovers was the proud recipient of the Manager of the Month for March with East Stirling midfielder Sean McAuley and Elgin City’s Adam Nelson taking the playing awards. On the same day we had a blow on the playing front when key midfielder Ciaran Ryan suffered a broken arm in training and would likely miss the rest of the season.

Saturday 2nd
With injuries and suspensions we had 6 of the first team squad unavailable for the visit of Montrose. Our old goal-scoring problem came back to haunt us with a vengeance as the majority of our scoring opportunities failed to hit the target. We were caught with a sucker punch midway through the first half when the visitors broke upfield to score and that was enough to give them a frustrating 1-0 win. We were fortunate that our rivals didn’t make up too much ground and we still have an 8-point lead over Cowdenbeath.

Friday 8th
Former Gretna boss Rowan Alexander was named as the new manager of Second Division Alloa.

Saturday 9th
We travelled to Albion Rovers needing a win to steady the nerves as we couldn’t afford to keep dropping points as we had been recently. An eventful game saw Ian Stevens give us the lead after 20 minutes but then we lost Townsley and Bell to injury in the next 10 minutes. When Baldacchino limped off with 20 minutes remaining I was getting really worried but a late goal from substitute Andy Smith sealed a 2-0 win and three very valuable points.

Sunday 10th
With his team struggling in 7th place in Division One, Falkirk manager John Hughes became the latest managerial candidate.

Friday 15th
East Fife manager Jim Moffat was sounding off in the papers again, stating that he didn’t want to see us gain promotion and that his team would beat us the next day. I responded that I was pretty confident that we would be going up – I hope I don’t get proved wrong!

Saturday 16th
The boys were fired up for the trip to East Fife I can tell you. We started very positively and by half time we had established a two-goal lead thanks to Danny Lennon and Ian Stevens. The home side came out for the restart full of spirit, their manager having obviously given them a fair old pep talk in the dressing room. They quickly pulled a goal back but we re-established our two-goal cushion through Stephen Cosgrove. But as the game wore on we tired rapidly and conceded two goals in a nightmare three-minute spell. A cracking match finished honours even but having built a good lead we should really have held on for the win.

Sunday 17th
The Scottish Cup Final will be contested between Celtic and Kilmarnock after they both won their respective Semis. Killie fell behind to a determined St. Mirren side but came back strongly to win 2-1. Celtic had a narrow 1-0 win against Livingstone in a match in which neither side showed much in the way of attacking invention.

Thursday 21st
Already thinking towards re-building the squad for next season, I agreed a deal with Albion Rovers to sign 21-year-old midfielder Joe Boyle for £9K. With Danny Lennon now 36 I am hoping that Boyle will provide good cover for the key position in front of the defence.

Saturday 23rd
We went into the game against Elgin knowing that a win would guarantee us promotion to the Second Division. It was a game that we never looked like losing as the visitors failed to create a scoring chance for the entire 90 minutes. On the other hand our lack of a killer touch up front meant that we never really looked like winning it either. When Gavin Skelton received his second yellow card on 77 minutes it looked like our luck was out. But with less than 5 minutes remaining Townsley got free on the right, sent in a teasing cross and Bingo Bingham was there to head home. The 1-0 win ensured that at worst we would finish as runners-up and next season we would be playing Second Division football.

Wednesday 27th
Falkirk have appointed 36-year-old David Wilson as their new manager, having prised him away from Ljungskile in the Swedish lower leagues.

Saturday 30th
With just three games left to play we knew that if we could win at bottom club East Stirling then the Third Division title would be almost certain. But going a goal behind after 10 minutes certainly wasn’t in the game plan. For the next 70 minutes we subjected the Shire to intense pressure, doing everything but score. With 7 minutes remaining we finally got the goal we deserved when Townsley fired home a free kick via the defensive wall. A win for Cowdenbeath also confirmed their promotion but if we could get one point from our next two games then we would secure the league title.

retired_amyslack

May 2005

Sunday 1st
Cowdenbeath manager Keith Wright took the managerial honours for April with his own Calvin Shand recognised as Young Player of the Month and Martin Bonnar of Queen’s Park lifting the senior award. I have to confess to feeling a twinge of satisfaction when I heard the rumours concerning East Fife boss Jim Moffat – his board are apparently losing patience with him and his days might be numbered.

Saturday 7th
With our final game of the season involving a trip to Cowdenbeath in a week’s time I would much rather that the title was decided today at home to Stenhousemuir. The Blue Brazil are in great form and I would not be totally confident of avoiding defeat there. A cagey first half was enlivened by a goal shortly before the interval – unfortunately it went the wrong was as far as I was concerned with the visitors taking the lead. Luckily centre back Andy Aitken found an equaliser within ten minutes of the restart when he powered home a Bingham corner. The visitors had a man sent off on the hour and I urged our players forward, looking fro the win. But with time running out a draw was on the cards until up popped Bingo to net a late winner. As things turned out a point would have been more than enough as Cowdenbeath suffered a shock 4-0 defeat at Albion Rovers.

Saturday 14th
With nothing left to play for our game at Cowdenbeath was almost surreal as both sides almost totally cancelled one another out. Neither keeper was unduly troubled for the entire 90 minutes and it was one of the tamest 0-0 draws that I have seen.

Monday 16th
The divisional awards were announced today and I was pleased to see that Mark Boyd was indeed voted Player of the Year. I received the Manager of the Year award and Townsley, Maddison and Boyd were all picked for the Team of the Year.

Wednesday 18th
Favourites Porto lifted the UEFA Cup, beating rank outsiders and surprise finalists Zaragoza 2-0.

Sunday 22nd
Centre back Patrick McCarthy received a call-up to the Ireland U-21 squad for their forthcoming matches against Israel and the Faeroe Islands.

Wednesday 25th
Real Madrid were crowned champions of Europe after they beat Inter in a tense Champions League Final. The match finished all square at 1-1 after extra time and Madrid held their nerve to win the dreaded penalty shootout.

Saturday 28th
Celtic enjoyed further cup success with a 2-1 defeat of Kilmarnock in the Scottish Cup Final. Henri Camara and Bobo Balde were on target for the Celts before Craig Dargo pulled a goal back for Killie.

Sunday 29th
The transfer budget for next season has been set at a generous £600K but I have no plans to spend too much of that in one go.

Monday 30th
Young forward Gary Cohen has returned from his season-long loan spell at Workington. I am looking forward to seeing how he will do as a replacement for the ageing Bingo.

Tuesday 31st
I spent quite some time going over the past season, starting with the various playing stats for the squad.


<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Name | Apps | Gls | Ast | MoM | Pas | Tck | Drb | Sh T | Av Rat| | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Ciaran Ryan | 13 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 76% | 1.51 | 1.67 | 40% | 7.46 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Mark Boyd | 38 (2) | 6 | 13 | 4 | 83% | 1.14 | 0.66 | 38% | 7.42 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | David Bingham | 34 (1) | 8 | 8 | 4 | 84% | 1.03 | 2.06 | 40% | 7.31 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Derek Townsley | 35 (2) | 3 | 3 | 4 | 76% | 3.05 | 0.68 | 35% | 7.30 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Danny Lennon | 36 (1) | 3 | 3 | 1 | 81% | 2.17 | 0.43 | 10% | 7.27 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Ian Stevens | 25 (11) | 18 | 7 | 3 | 89% | 0.40 | 0.70 | 58% | 7.25 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Lee Maddison | 36 (1) | 3 | 1 | 2 | 75% | 3.40 | 0.41 | - | 7.24 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Martin Bell | 29 (1) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 70% | 3.31 | 0.30 | - | 7.23 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Alan Main | 46 | - | 1 | 1 | 49% | - | 0.04 | - | 7.20 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Andy Aitken | 41 (1) | 1 | 1 | - | 70% | 2.20 | 0.15 | - | 7.19 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Stephen Cosgrove | 27 (2) | 6 | 4 | 1 | 80% | 2.49 | 1.95 | 35% | 7.17 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Simon Ruddick | 7 (1) | - | - | - | 70% | 1.13 | - | - | 7.13 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Patrick McCarthy | 16 | - | 1 | 1 | 81% | 3.25 | 0.19 | - | 7.13 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Peter Ramage | 2 | - | 1 | - | 74% | 1.00 | - | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Marc Cleeland | 5 (2) | - | 2 | - | 67% | 0.88 | - | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Richard Prokas | 7 (8) | 2 | 2 | - | 71% | 2.67 | 1.44 | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Mark Birch | 7 (1) | - | - | - | 68% | 1.92 | 0.51 | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Gavin Skelton | 6 | - | - | - | 72% | 2.05 | 0.17 | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Ian Cummersky | 7 (10) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 86% | 0.65 | 0.44 | 46% | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Martin Cameron | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 7.00 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Andy Smith | 16 (8) | 6 | 1 | - | 85% | 0.59 | 0.52 | 41% | 6.92 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Joe Savage | 4 (5) | 4 | 1 | - | 86% | 0.61 | 0.61 | - | 6.89 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | David Holdsworth | 11 | - | - | - | 69% | 2.08 | - | - | 6.73 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Davie Irons | 8 (13) | 3 | 1 | - | 78% | 1.29 | 0.74 | 47% | 6.67 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Ryan Baldacchino | 16 (7) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 80% | 1.45 | 2.64 | 37% | 6.65 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | John Hore | 8 (5) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 78% | 1.95 | 0.80 | - | 6.62 | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | David Wylie | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre>

New signing Ciaran Ryan was a big success for us and it was a pity that his season was cut short by injury. Mark Boyd was excellent in midfield and Derek Townsley performed well both at full back and on the right of midfield. The veterans, Bingham, Lennon and Stevens all performed well and all were rewarded with a one-year contract extension. In fact Stevens ended as our top scorer with 18 goals. Lee Maddison played fairly well at left back and Martin Bell proved successful on the right of defence after his switch from the centre. Alan Main was our only ever-present, never missing a game all season and playing consistently well – he too has been given a one-year extension.

Next I perused the league table at length.

Scottish Third Division

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|| Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | C | GRETNA | 36 | 19 | 13 | 4 | 53 | 28 | +25 | 70 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | P | Cowdenbeath | 36 | 18 | 9 | 9 | 52 | 35 | +17 | 63 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Peterhead | 36 | 15 | 13 | 8 | 57 | 49 | +8 | 58 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Albion | 36 | 17 | 4 | 15 | 57 | 42 | +15 | 55 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | East Fife | 36 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 40 | 34 | +6 | 53 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Montrose | 36 | 13 | 6 | 17 | 53 | 54 | -1 | 45 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Elgin | 36 | 12 | 8 | 16 | 42 | 52 | -10 | 44 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Queen's Park | 36 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 39 | 46 | -7 | 42 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Stenhousemuir | 36 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 39 | 52 | -13 | 42 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | East Stirling | 36 | 4 | 9 | 23 | 32 | 72 | -40 | 21 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre>

Defensively we had the best record in the division and that was definitely the key to the title. Our goalscoring wasn’t as bad as I had perceived but if we could have tucked away a few more chances then we would have wrapped up the title earlier in the season.

I then took some time to check out the tables from the other divisions, just to check on the final standings.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Scottish Premier League| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | C | Rangers | 37 | 23 | 5 | 9 | 71 | 46 | +25 | 74 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Celtic | 37 | 19 | 12 | 6 | 70 | 45 | +25 | 69 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Dundee | 37 | 14 | 13 | 10 | 63 | 55 | +8 | 55 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Hearts | 37 | 14 | 11 | 12 | 55 | 54 | +1 | 53 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Dunfermline | 37 | 14 | 10 | 13 | 50 | 54 | -4 | 52 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Motherwell | 37 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 54 | 57 | -3 | 45 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Kilmarnock | 37 | 12 | 11 | 14 | 51 | 54 | -3 | 47 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Aberdeen | 37 | 13 | 8 | 16 | 47 | 55 | -8 | 47 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Inverness CT | 37 | 11 | 11 | 15 | 51 | 60 | -9 | 44 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Hibs | 37 | 11 | 10 | 16 | 49 | 62 | -13 | 43 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Livingston | 37 | 11 | 9 | 17 | 47 | 55 | -8 | 42 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | R | Dundee Utd | 37 | 9 | 8 | 20 | 45 | 56 | -11 | 35 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Scottish First Division| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | C | St. Johnstone | 36 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 56 | 43 | +13 | 64 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Queen of Sth | 36 | 19 | 6 | 11 | 58 | 49 | +9 | 63 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Partick | 36 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 54 | 49 | +5 | 56 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Clyde | 36 | 16 | 7 | 13 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 55 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Raith | 36 | 16 | 6 | 14 | 51 | 48 | +3 | 54 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Falkirk | 36 | 14 | 7 | 15 | 42 | 50 | -8 | 49 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Ross County | 36 | 15 | 3 | 18 | 53 | 53 | 0 | 48 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Airdrie Utd | 36 | 13 | 5 | 18 | 52 | 51 | +1 | 44 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | R | St. Mirren | 36 | 12 | 7 | 17 | 49 | 57 | -8 | 43 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | R | Hamilton | 36 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 41 | 60 | -19 | 30 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Scottish Second Division| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | C | Stirling | 36 | 16 | 9 | 11 | 56 | 46 | +10 | 57 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | P | Brechin | 36 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 57 | 42 | +15 | 56 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Dumbarton | 36 | 16 | 7 | 13 | 52 | 51 | +1 | 55 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Forfar | 36 | 16 | 6 | 14 | 50 | 48 | +2 | 54 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Berwick | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 53 | 51 | +2 | 52 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Stranraer | 36 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 53 | 51 | +2 | 51 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Alloa | 36 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 56 | 56 | 0 | 50 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Ayr | 36 | 13 | 8 | 15 | 50 | 57 | -7 | 47 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | R | Morton | 36 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 46 | 60 | -14 | 40 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | R | Arbroath | 36 | 12 | 3 | 21 | 40 | 51 | -11 | 39 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre>