retired_amyslack

June 2005

Saturday 4th
With the players and staff all starting a well-deserved break, I settled down to watch Scotland’s World Cup qualifier at home to Moldova. The home side played well and pretty much dominated play only to see the visiting keeper repel all of their scoring efforts. But with ten minutes remaining the boys at last got the goal they deserved when Steven Thompson of Rangers was on hand to sidefoot home a rebound for a crucial three points.

Sunday 5th
The paperwork came through today for the transfer of Joe Boyle from Albion Rovers and although the lad himself was on holiday, he is now officially a Gretna player.

Tuesday 7th
Patrick McCarthy gained his 4th U-21 cap when he came on as a half time substitute in Ireland’s 2-1 defeat by the Faeroe Islands.

Wednesday 8th
Scotland rekindled their World Cup hopes with a fine 1-0 win in Belarus, Paul Dickov of Blackburn scoring the only goal of the game in the 3rd minute. The win lifted the Scots up to second in their group, one point ahead of Slovenia.

Monday 20th
I was somewhat surprised to learn that veteran striker Ian Stevens was voted the Supporters Player of the Year, figuring that Mark Boyd or even club captain Bingham would have gotten the nod.

Wednesday 22nd
The board have set their target for the season and have informed me that they expect to be promoted from the Second Division. Ambitious – certainly. Achievable – not without bringing some new blood in.

Thursday 23rd
I started a bit of a clearout of the playing squad as I released several players who were very close to the end of their contract. Off went veterans Davie Irons, Andy Smith and David Wylie along with unwanted reserves Brian Gilfillan and Daniel Grainger.


July 2005

Sunday 3rd
Reserve keeper Craig Summersgill was released on a free transfer as the 19-year-old was never going to feature in my plans.

Monday 4th
I got one over on my old adversary East Fife manager Jim Moffat when I stole his best scout, Donald MacKay.

Saturday 16th
The season kicked off early for Hearts and Dunfermline as they tasted action in the Inter-Toto Cup. The Edinburgh side suffered a 3-1 defeat in the home leg to Boavista but the Pars are in better shape after winning 2-1 at Bochum.

Tuesday 19th
Scout Julian Carrera has discovered a young striker who looks interesting as a free signing and I feel that 20-year-old Rob Elvins is worth bringing in.

Wednesday 20th
A training injury to David Bingham disrupted our pre-season preparation and he was ruled out for several weeks with a broken shoulder.

Friday 22nd
We have had several reserve players on the transfer list for some time with no interest so today I terminated the contracts of goalkeeper David Mathieson, defender Ryan McGuffie and striker Kenny Deuchar.

Saturday 23rd
Inter-Toto time again and Hearts were unable to retrieve their tie, losing 2-1 in Portugal as Boavista racked up a comfortable 5-2 aggregate. But Dunfermline made progress, a 1-1 draw at East End Park enough to take them through against Bochum.

Tuesday 26th
New signing Elvins will miss the first month or so of the season after suffering strained knee ligaments in training.

Wednesday 27th
Celtic were in Champions League action in the 2nd qualifying round and were disappointed to concede an away goal to Albanian opposition, winning 2-1 at home to SK Tirana. Dunfermline took a step nearer to the UEFA Cup when they won in Finland, beating FC Lahti 1-0.

Saturday 30th
We began our defence of the Challenge Cup with a visit to Peterhead and I took the opportunity to put out a strong team to start to give my first choice players some match fitness. We took the lead through Mark Boyd but I wasn’t best pleased when we conceded two soft goals to go into the break a goal down. Worse was to follow as we conceded again and crashed out 3-1.

retired_amyslack

August 2005

Monday 1st
The bookies released their promotion odds today and I was surprised to find that we were priced at 5-4, just behind joint favourites Hamilton and St. Mirren. I was contacted by a journalist to ask if I felt that the current squad was strong enough to gain promotion. I responded that if we could avoid injuries to key players ten it was achievable.

Tuesday 2nd
We made two signings today to strengthen our goalkeeping. Veteran former Hearts player Henry Smith came in as goalkeeping coach. The 49-year-old spent a season at the club a few years ago and he has also been registered as a player to provide some backup. At the other end of the age spectrum Greg Kelly is an 18-year-old prospect who could turn out to be a decent player. He was released by Aberdeen in the summer and we will see how he fares in the youth team.

Wednesday 3rd
Despite suffering the shock of conceding an early goal, Celtic recovered well in their Champions League tie, winning 3-1 in Albania to record a 5-2 aggregate over SK Tirana. There was Inter-Toto action too as Dunfermline won 2-0 at home to FC Lahti to go through to one of the three finals.

Wednesday 10th
Both halves of the Old Firm were in action in the Champions League tonight in the 3rd qualifying round. Celtic had a good 2-1 win at Basel and Rangers also were victorious, 2-0 at Red Star. In the Inter-Toto Dunfermline had a tough draw against Tottenham and acquitted themselves well in the first leg, holding the Premiership side to a 0-0 draw.

Thursday 11th
Kilmarnock managed a 2-1 win at home to MyPa of Finland in the 2nd qualifying round of the UEFA Cup but might yet regret conceding a late away goal.

Saturday 13th
Our league campaign began with a trip to Dumbarton and although Bingham was back in full training he was nowhere fit enough to even put on the bench. There wasn’t much to choose between the teams in terms of possession or chances but they took advantage of their opportunities better than we did and they won 2-1. We didn’t do a lot wrong as far as I could see, although I would have to say that Alan Main could possibly have dealt better with their second goal. After the game Dumbarton manager Mickey Weir was quick to talk to the press, crowing about his team’s win and casting doubts on our promotion credentials. I made a fairly low-key response echoing my belief that we still had a decent chance of going up.

Monday 15th
Striker Martin Cameron surprised me today by asking to be placed on the transfer list. Not one to have unhappy players in the squad I agreed to his request.

Saturday 20th
Bingo was back in the starting lineup for the visit of Alloa but it was the performance of Mark Boyd in midfield that was the catalyst for our good 2-0 win. It seems that Mickey Weir’s comments have spurred the lad on to greater efforts and he was immense today. Having created the first goal for Ian Stevens and scored the second himself he was fully deserving of his Man of the Match award. It was also comforting to see Alan Main put in a solid display after looking somewhat shaky in our first two games.

Sunday 21st
I had another transfer request put on my desk today as young centre back Peter Ramage asked for a move.

Wednesday 24th
Both Rangers and Celtic built on their victories in the away legs of the Champions League games by winning at home to move into the group stage. Celtic beat Basel 2-0 and Rangers recorded the same scoreline over Red Star. However Dunfermline fell at the final hurdle in the Inter-Toto, slumping to a 3-0 defeat at Spurs.

Thursday 25th
Kilmarnock progressed in the UEFA Cup as a 1-1 draw in Finland took them to a 3-2 aggregate win over MyPa.

Friday 26th
Porto held their nerve to win a penalty shootout against Real Madrid in the European Super Cup. The game finished tied at one apiece at the end of normal time but the UEFA Cup holders saw off their Spanish neighbours in the penalty lottery.

Saturday 27th
Alan Main earned his corn in the trip to Forfar, pulling off a string of fine saves to keep us in the game. The 0-0 scoreline favoured us somewhat as the home side made most of the running. The good news was that we could welcome back Joe Savage after his serious head injury. He took a seat on the bench but came on for the last 15 minutes in place of Bingham. Hamilton recorded their 3rd straight win to confirm their status as promotion favourites and we are one of a host of teams on four points.

retired_jgirl87

Well done on the Division 3 Championship. :thup:

The season after a promotion is always a good test of a side's abilities. I'll be following your Division 2 form closely, Bob.

retired_donna121

Its good to see that you are replicating real life, apart from Kenny Deuchar of course!

I live about 20 mins from Gretna so it is interesting to read how they are getting on, liking it so far. :thup:

retired_amyslack

Thanks chaps. Jorg - I may have missed a trick with Kenny. I didn't realise that he was scoring for fun IRL and as he hadn't done much in the reserves I decided to let him go.

September 2005

Thursday 1st
It was no surprise to see Hamilton boss Allan Maitland win the Manager of the Month with his own Scott Tunbridge taking the senior player award. The Australian striker has found the net 4 times in his team’s 3 league games thus far. Young Cowdenbeath striker Liam Buchanan took the junior prize having scored three times in three league games.

Saturday 3rd
Scotland did remarkably well to hold group leaders Italy to a goalless draw at Hampden in their World Cup qualifier, a result that keeps them in the runners-up spot in the group.

Tuesday 6th
As coincidence would have it we had to make the long trip north to Forfar once again for a League Cup tie. I fielded the second string to give them a run out and they were unfortunate to lose 2-1.

Wednesday 7th
Scotland were in World Cup action again and suffered a crushing 3-0 defeat in Norway. Despite the loss they remain second in the group with two games remaining.

Saturday 10th
We put in our best display of the season so far at home to Berwick, enjoying a good deal of the ball and creating a good number of chances. Captain Bingham finally gave us the lead with 25 minutes remaining but ten minutes later we were caught in the break and conceded an equaliser. With time running out we grabbed a stoppage time winner when Bingo scored again to give us a deserved win.

Tuesday 13th
Celtic got off to a dreadful start in their Champions League group, suffering a comprehensive 3-0 defeat at Benfica.

Wednesday 14th
Rangers suffered an almost identical fate to that of their great rivals when they too returned from Portugal defeated, Porto winning 3-1.

Thursday 15th
There was more bad news for the domestic game in The UEFA Cup. Dundee entered the competition in the 3rd qualifying round and lost 2-1 at home to Deportivo whilst Kilmarnock recorded an identical scoreline in their home tie with Levski of Bulgaria.

Saturday 17th
We seem to be starting to find our feet now and we put in another good display at Stranraer and had we put our chances away we would surely have won. As it was Ian Steven’s first half goal was cancelled out late on and we had to settle for a 1-1 draw.

Saturday 24th
A fit-again Rob Elvins made his first start of the season and he marked his debut with the equalising goal in our 1-1 draw with St. Mirren. The visitors took an early lead but for most of the game we matched them all over the pitch and on chances created we could have won.

Tuesday 27th
Rangers suffered another crushing defeat in the Champions League, losing 3-0 at home to Inter as the Italian giants showed their class.

Wednesday 28th
Celtic saw an improvement in their fortunes with a good 2-0 win at home to Rosenborg to give their Champions League hopes a boost. The 2nd round of the League Cup produced one major upset as Third Division Montrose recorded a stunning 3-1 win over SPL side St. Johnstone.

Thursday 29th
Dundee and Kilmarnock both bowed out of the UEFA Cup prior to the group stages. Dundee lost 2-0 at Deportivo for a 4-0 aggregate defeat but Kilmarnock put up quite a fight in Bulgaria. The game finished 2-1 in their favour, the 3-3 aggregate meaning that extra time was required. Unfortunately Levski found the winner in the second extra period to win the tie overall.

Friday 30th
It has been a busy month for the coaches as we have had a number of free agents in on trial and after an initial assessment we have agreed contracts with the following.

Scott Bannerman (26) – a former Hibs and Morton player, he can play at the back or in midfield and is primarily right sided.
Simon Rusk (23) – released by Boston United he is a similar player to Bannerman but tends to operate on the left.
Steven McGregor (20) – spent a season at Stenhousemuir before being let go and will provide cover in central midfield.
Steven Hampshire (25) – the former Dunfermline player had spells at Brechin and East Fife and is a hard working forward.
Nicky McDonald (19) – released by Dundee United the youngster might develop into a decent midfield prospect.

retired_confal2

All the best in the Second Division. Still a very enjoyable read :thup:

retired_vbrazon

Really enjoying Bobev. Good luck in div 2.

retired_amyslack

[i]Thanks a lot chaps[/b]

October 2005

Saturday 1st
St. Mirren manager Gus McPherson was voted Manager of the Month for September as his team began to look more like promotion contenders. Ayr swept the playing awards with veteran striker Paul Ritchie and young winger Ryan Wilkie taking the honours. We entertained the team in 3rd place and manager Billy Reid tried to exert some pressure with a claim that his side were confident of a win. The game itself was a close encounter indeed and the loss of striker Elvins after half an hour was crucial. We failed to take our chances and were made to pay when Ayr top scorer Ritchie got the only goal of the game.

Saturday 8th
Young keeper Craig Gordon was apportioned most of the blame for Scotland’s 3-2 defeat at home to Belarus in their critical World Cup qualifier. The 22-year-old, who now plays his football at Mallorca in Spain, was singled out for criticism after he conceded twice in the first 20 minutes. The Scots fought back to square the game but a late penalty condemned them to a defeat that virtually kills off their chances of a playoff place.

Wednesday 12th
Scotland’s World Cup fate was sealed when they slumped to a 2-1 loss in Slovenia. Italy were comfortable group winners and Norway took second place and entered the playoffs.

Saturday 15th
Our visit to newly promoted Cowdenbeath ended in disappointment as, despite outshooting our opponents we once again failed to score and suffered a 2-0 defeat. Elvins picked up a knock for the second game in succession and replacement Savage was none too effective. With Bingham struggling with a training injury, Hampshire came in for his first start but he too picked up a knock and will miss a week or so.

Tuesday 18th
Rangers suffered their 3rd defeat in three games in the Champions League, losing 2-0 at Werder Bremen and they prop up the rest with little hope of progression.

Wednesday 19th
But for the heroics of young keeper David Marshall, Celtic’s 1-0 defeat at FC Bayern would have been considerably heavier. The 20-year-old was in sparkling form between the posts and was rightly commended as Man of the Match.

Saturday 22nd
We travelled to bottom club Alloa really needing a win to get our confidence back up but it would have to be obtained without Bingham and Hampshire, both players on the injury list. So Gary Cohen was drafted in from the reserves for his first start of the season. He certainly impressed and has made a claim for a more regular role in the team. We got the win we needed, Ciaran Ryan scoring both goals in our 2-0 victory.

Saturday 29th
We entertained runaway leaders Hamilton today and I was pretty pleased with the result. We outplayed them for the majority of the game and with a bit more composure in front of goal we could have gained an impressive win. As it was Ryan’s early goal was cancelled out midway through the first half and we had to be content with a 1-1 draw.

Sunday 30th
There was a high-profile managerial sacking today when Hearts fired manager Craig Levein. His team were struggling in 10th place in the SPL and the press speculation suggests that Walter Smith heads the list of potential replacements.

retired_amyslack

November 2005

Tuesday 1st
Ray Stewart of Forfar was October’s Manager of the month after lifting his team to 2nd place in the table. His own young left back Adam Gross and midfielder Pat Keogh of Hamilton received the playing awards. Celtic restored a modicum of pride in the Champions League by holding FC Bayern to a 1-1 draw in Glasgow, although once again they relied on keeper Marshall to hold on to the point. They still have hopes of qualifying but a UEFA Cup slot looks more realistic.

Wednesday 2nd
Rangers also had success at home to German opposition, gaining their first points in the group with a 2-0 win at home to Werder Bremen. Given that those two will be fighting out the UEFA Cup place then it could be a crucial win for the Gers.

Saturday 5th
The visit of Dumbarton presented us with a very nice 2-0 win courtesy of goals from Cohen and Stevens. If our attack could be that productive every game we would surely be challenging for promotion rather than in 4th place, ten points behind Hamilton. Mind you the leaders had a major hiccup today, going down to a 5-1 thumping at Cowdenbeath.

Sunday 6th
Ross County were the surprise winners of the Challenge Cup, beating fancied Dundee United 2-0.

Saturday 12th
The first legs of the World Cup playoffs took place today with Bulgaria winning 2-1 in Bosnia, Norway gaining a good 3-1 victory in Russia and Georgia doing well to get a 1-1 draw in the Czech Republic.

Wednesday 16th
The bookies were right – Walter Smith is the new man in charge at Hearts. Having been out of the game for some time the 57-year-old is said to be delighted to have day-to-day involvement in football once more. The final World Cup qualifiers from Europe were decided – Bulgaria built on the first-leg lead with a 3-1 home win, a 2-2 draw was good enough for Norway and the Czechs won 2-0 away from home to go through.

Saturday 19th
I expected a hard game when form team Forfar came to town so our 2-1 win was a real bonus. We played pretty well and young Cohen has made a difference to the team. So much so that Bingo is going to find it difficult to get his place back. Steven Cosgrove made his first appearance of the season as a substitute and he netted what proved to be the winner in the second half. We were a goal to the good by that time as Stevens had scored in the first period. But the visitors pulled one back and Cosgrove’s goal proved vital. Cowdenbeath continued their assault on Division Two defences with a 6-1 defeat of Alloa and Hamilton slipped to their second successive defeat when they lost at home to Dumbarton.

Tuesday 22nd
Rangers were involved in an enthralling contest against Porto in their Champions League group. Playing at Ibrox, they mounted a fantastic fightback to recover from 3-1 down, scoring four unanswered goals to win 5-3. After an appalling start in the group they now look set to at least get a place in the UEFA Cup and could even grab the second qualification place.

Wednesday 23rd
Unfortunately for them, Celtic were unable to emulate the exploits of their great rivals as they faced Portuguese opposition in Glasgow and Benfica were comfortable 3-0 winners. They now must avoid defeat in their final game at Rosenborg to clinch 3rd place and a UEFA Cup spot.

Saturday 26th
We made the relatively short journey to Berwick in good spirits and returned feeling slightly fortunate that we had gained a point. The home keeper kept our attack at bay with some fine saves and had his teammate Lee Howlett not struck the bar with his penalty just after half time then he would have gained his team a useful win. As it was the game ended scoreless but not for the want of trying on both sides. A 3rd successive defeat for Hamilton and a surprise loss for Cowdenbeath is keeping the table competitive and we remain 4th, three points outside the promotion places.

retired_amyslack

December 2005

Thursday 1st
I was surprised to say the least when I was presented with the Manager of the Month award for November. Player of the Month was central defender Robbie Horn of Berwick and striker Liam Gibb of Forfar was again the recipient of the Young Players award.

Saturday 3rd
We played quite poorly in our home game against Stranraer, not showing any attacking fluency and creating very few scoring opportunities. The visitors were solid at the back and broke forward to some effect, profiting when one of our attacks broke down to score the only goal of the game. An injury to Ciaran Ryan didn’t help our cause and we will miss a game or two with a strained neck.

Sunday 4th
It came as a shock when I was informed that Northampton Town of League Two in England were interested in talking to me about their managerial vacancy but I had no hesitation in turning down their offer as I was in no hurry to move away from Gretna.

Tuesday 6th
Celtic failed in their attempt to secure 3rd place in their Champions League group as they suffered a poor 2-1 defeat at Rosenborg.

Wednesday 7th
A thumping 4-0 defeat at Inter ruined any lingering hopes Rangers had of taking the runner-up place but they did manage to finish 3rd and fell into the UEFA Cup safety net.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">GROUP A| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | CSKA Moscow | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 12 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | PSV | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 11 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Valencia | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 10 | -3 | 6 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Paris | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | -3 | 5 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP B| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | FC Bayern | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 1 | +7 | 14 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Benfica | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 10 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Rosenborg | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 6 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Celtic | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 4 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP C| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Chelsea | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 2 | +8 | 15 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Juventus | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 15 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Anderlecht | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 12 | -4 | 4 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Fenerbahçe | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 17 | -11 | 1 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP D| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Arsenal | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 5 | +8 | 15 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Milan | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 9 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Leverkusen | 6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 11 | -5 | 4 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Panathinaikos | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 9 | -7 | 3 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP E| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Roma | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 12 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Barcelona | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 9 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Liverpool | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 7 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Lyon | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 13 | -11 | 2 | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP F| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Inter | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 3 | +15 | 18 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Porto | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 11 | +1 | 9 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Rangers | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 15 | -7 | 6 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Werder Bremen | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 12 | -9 | 3 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP G| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Banik Ostrava | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 6 | +3 | 12 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Ajax | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 11 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Club Brugge | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 11 | -2 | 7 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Young Boys | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 13 | -4 | 4 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| GROUP H| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Pos | Inf | Team | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | Q | Man Utd | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 4 | +9 | 16 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | Q | Sporting | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 8 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | R. Madrid | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Wisla | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 12 | -9 | 4 | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre>

Saturday 10th
We played the majority of the game at St. Mirren against ten men after young midfielder Gary Gillespie was sent off just ten minutes into the game. Despite our advantage we made heavy weather of it and the 3-1 win flattered us a little. The fact that Alan Main was voted Man of the Match indicated just how active the home attack was. We took the lead after half an hour when Townsley scored his first of the season but were pegged back before half time. Ian Stevens put us back in front shortly after the restart when he intercepted a poor backpass to round the keeper and score. He made the game safe with 20 minutes remaining with a classic route one goal – he ran on to a long kick from Main before controlling the ball and firing home.

Saturday 17th
With Ayr boss Billy Reid having been mouthing off in the papers once more about how his team will put a dent in our promotion hopes, it was doubly satisfying to record a 1-0 win over them on their own turf. Ian Stevens got the only goal of an even contest and Alan Main once again showed his worth with another very good performance between the sticks.

Wednesday 21st
Our Scottish Cup campaign was over before it began after we suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at home to Dumbarton. I altered the team completely, filling it with second choice players to give them some playing time. Sadly they didn’t gel – not too surprising really given that they are not used to playing with one another. What was disappointing though was that not one of the players stood out as worthy of challenging for the first team which gives me cause for concern.

Saturday 24th
Dunfermline manager David Hay was given an early Christmas present by his club but unfortunately for him the sack he received did not contain any presents! After an excellent 4th place finish last season, the Pars sat just one point off bottom and Hay has paid the price.


Monday 26th
I’ve never been a fan of the Boxing Day fixture but at least today we played at home with Cowdenbeath, the other promoted team and surprise promotion challengers, the visitors. Keith Wright has done a great job with his team again this season and I knew that we would have a tough game. 39-year-old Ian Stevens has seen off the challenge of the young bucks and he once again underlined his importance to us by scoring both goals in our excellent 2-1 win. It was a very valuable win and moved us into a promotion place for the first time this season.