retired_amyslack

January 2005

On New Years Day we welcome the visit of Alloa and goals in each half from Grace and Cameron are enough for a 2-0 win.

A trip to Love Street follows to take on St. Mirren. We fall behind after 20 minutes but full back Mark Birch squares the game before Cameron puts us ahead before half time. A further strike by Cameron extends our lead before the home side pull a goal back. However we score two more through Grace and Grant to return with a 5-2 win. Unfortunately we suffer a couple of injuries – Harding will be out for a fortnight and loan winger Dunnet will miss the rest of the season, a real blow as he has been playing well for us. I rather cold-heartedly decide to terminate his loan deal and see if I can pick up a replacement elsewhere. Within a few days I secure the services of Stirling youngster Chris Geddes for the remainder of the season.

Our Scottish Cup campaign continues with a visit from First Division Brechin. Everything goes our way in this game. We take the lead through an own goal, the visitors have a man sent off, Ryan Errington scores a hat trick and we win 5-1, Grant getting the other goal.

We come back from our trip to bottom club Arbroath with a 3-0 win. Grace put us ahead from the penalty spot and centre backs Melville and O’Neill were both on target in the second half.

A hectic month continues with a visit from Forfar. Following a scoreless first half we hit top gear after the break with Harding and Vaughan each scoring a brace and Geddes joins in the fun as we rack up a 5-0 win.

The month ends with another away game as we visit East Fife. The sparse crows enjoyed some attacking football from both sides with the goalies kept very busy. The home side went into the break a goal to the good but we scored twice in the last 7 minutes through Grace and Cleeland before conceding a stoppage time equaliser to end with a 2-2 draw.

We stretch our lead over Ross County to 9 points and look very capable of securing promotion. Winger Allan Grant is recognised as Player of the Month in the January awards and I win Manager of the Month.

retired_amyslack

February 2005

The moth begins with a long trek north to face title-rivals Ross County. We are awarded two first-half penalties, both converted by Gary Harding, and reach the break well in control. The home side reduce the deficit but Cameron ties up the 3-1 win ten minutes from time.

Our Scottish Cup adventure continues at First Division St. Johnstone. We thoroughly outplay the home side and gain a fine 1-0 win, Kevin Melville scoring the only goal of the game late on with a powerful header from a Geddes corner. We can even afford the luxury of a missed Harding penalty minutes later.

Next up we have a midweek visit from Albion Rovers and we dominate possession but don’t make the most of our opportunities. A Cameron goal after 65 minutes is cancelled out ten minutes from time and we have to settle for a 1-1 draw.

There is little time for rest before our next league match, a visit from Hamilton but we secure a 2-0 win with goals from Harding and Geddes. Unfortunately central defender Melville picks up a knock and will be out for at least a week.

A trip to Stenhousemuir closes out the month and sustained first-half pressure sees us reach the break 3-0 ahead thanks to Cameron, Vaughan and Harding. The home side pull a goal back after the restart but centre back Gary Brown, in for the inured Melville, restores our three-goal lead and we finish with a 4-1 win.

Another good month on the pitch sees us extend our lead at the top of the table to 12 points and I scoop the Manager of the Month award.

retired_amyslack

March 2005

European competition restarts this month and in the Champions League knockout stage Celtic make the relatively short trip to London but are beaten 2-0 by Arsenal and have a lot of work to do to stay in the competition. In the UEFA Cup Rangers also face domestic opposition, beating Manchester City 1-0 in Glasgow whilst Aberdeen draw 1-1 at home to Bordeaux.

We start off with a visit to Alloa and the home side go in front with less than ten minutes played but a Grace penalty evens the score before the interval. We outplay them in the second period and further goals from Harding, Errington and Cameron see us run out 4-1 winners. The bad news is that keeper Vince Parker will be out for 3 weeks with a calf strain.

In the UEFA Cup, a scoreless draw in Manchester is enough for Rangers to progress. Aberdeen draw 1-1 in France and the game is decided on penalties with the Dons winning the shootout 5-4.

In possibly the biggest game in the Club’s short history we travel to Livingston for the Scottish Cup Quarter Final and we are without key defender Melville who picked up a knock in training. The SPL side are immediately on the attack and score virtually straight from the kick-off. We refuse to be intimidated though and within ten minutes Cameron finds an equaliser. Unfortunately our key striker has to leave the field injured shortly before half time. Errington puts us in dreamland with a goal on 52 minutes and we are able to hold on for a historic 2-1 win to reach the Semi Finals.

We barely have time to draw breath before we are back in action once more with St. Mirren the visitors and Cameron, Harding and Grant all score in a fairly comfortable 3-0 win.

Celtic bow out of the Champions League, losing 1-0 to Arsenal at Parkhead for a disappointing 3-0 aggregate defeat. In the UEFA Cup the domestic matchups continue with Aberdeen suffering a comprehensive 3-0 defeat at Middlesbrough whilst Rangers have to settle for a scoreless draw at home to Marseille.

A trip to Forfar soon follows and we gift them an early goal straight from the kick-off. Stewart Jack is making a very rare start as we rest Cameron and the loanee scores twice in the second half but we concede another sloppy goal near the end and leave with a 2-2 draw.

The first major trophy of the season is decided with Kilmarnock beating Aberdeen 2-0 in the League Cup Final.

Before our next game we unload another unwanted Englishman as Richard Prokas goes to Fleet Town for a nominal £1K.

Our final game of the month sees the visit of bottom club Arbroath. Little goes right for us in the first half as we lose Melville to injury and see Vaughan blast a penalty high over the bar. But things improve after the break and goals from Grant and O’Neill give us a 2-0 win. Once the dust has settled and the other scores are in it becomes clear that we have upset the odds and secured promotion to the First Division.

In the UEFA Cup Aberdeen were unable to recover from their first leg defeat and were eliminated but Rangers went through on penalties after a scoreless draw in Marseille.

We make a clean sweep of the monthly awards with Allan Grant and Gary Harding scooping the player’s awards and yours truly getting the managerial plaudits.

retired_amyslack

April 2005

We had no competitive action in the first weekend of the month as World Cup qualification continued. Scotland had an impressive 4-0 win in Latvia to maintain second place in their group. This was followed by a creditable goalless draw at home to group leaders Holland.

The lads may have been preoccupied with the forthcoming Semi Final as their performance at Albion Rovers was not the best and we suffer a 2-0 defeat.

In the UEFA Cup Quarter Finals Rangers are involved in a 6-goal thriller at home to Club Brugge, the game ending 3-3.

The big day arrives and we travel to Hampden Park to face First Division Partrick Thistle in the Scottish Cup Semi Final. Kilmarnock have already booked their place in the Final with a 2-0 defeat of Motherwell a day earlier. Our opponents are riding high in their division, battling out the single promotion place with Clyde, so it will be far from easy. I risk playing a less than fit Melville in central defence and hope that he will be able to stand the pace. The boys are fired up and set about their opponents with a vengeance, having the better of the first half but unable to find a goal. The deadlock is broken 10 minutes after the break by Alex Grace with a well-crafted goal. On the hour mark Allan Grant is on hand to prod home a rebound and we have one foot in the final. With time running out Grace seals a fantastic win with his second goal of the game. The lads all played above themselves as Thistle seemed to freeze and Grace and Grant, our most experienced players, were both outstanding. Melville didn’t last the 90 minutes but his performance was also important at the back.

There is precious little time to celebrate, as we are straight into midweek action with a visit from East Fife. A few players are rested but we still get a 2-0 win with goals from Cameron and Grace. The win also seals the championship as Ross County can no loner overtake us.

Rangers bow out of the UEFA Cup, losing 2-0 at Brugge for a 5-3 aggregate defeat.

As it happens our next game is at home to Ross County but with the title wrapped we are playing just for pride but they are seeking to secure promotion. My main concern on the playing side is another injury to Melville and we will be struggling to get home fit enough for the Cup Final. The game ends goalless which is probably a fair reflection of the balance of play.

For our final game of a momentous month we travel to Hamilton. Grant gives us the lead in the first half but we concede twice after the break to lose 2-1. My main concern now is to keep all of our key players fit and available and we get through the game injury-free. Ross County tie up second place and promotion and Arbroath are relegated.

retired_amyslack

May 2005

The month begins with bad news on the injury front as loanee Brian Vaughan sustains a torn groin muscle. I feel very sorry for the lad as he will now miss the Cup Final and I send him back to Charlton with a heavy heart. He has been an important player for us this season and it is sad to see him leave in these circumstances. Striker Shaun Milligan will also be unavailable, as a back strain will keep him out for 4 weeks.

Our league campaign ends with a visit from Stenhousemuir and goals from Cameron and Grace give us a 2-0 win. Melville was fit enough to sit on the bench and he came on for the second half and is looking fit and well. St. Mirren take the second relegation place in the division after they lost 4-3 at relegated Arbroath and fail to overhaul Alloa.

Cameron, Grace and Harding are all selected for the Second Division team of the Year for their excellent play throughout the season. Cameron was also recognised as the Player of the Year, Harding was runner-up in Goal of the Season and I won the Manager of the Year award.

Club Brugge are shock winners of the UEFA Cup, beating Inter on penalties after a goalless encounter in Marseille.

The day before the Cup Final we suffer a severe blow as Alex Grace is ruled out after he fractured his jaw in an unfortunate accident on the training ground. The game itself took place in a far-from-packed Hampden, with less than 35,000 spectators reflecting the unglamorous nature of the finalists. An even first half ended scoreless and we looked fairly comfortable in our steady 4-4-2 formation with keeper Parker not having to make save in the first 45 minutes. Kilmarnock applied increasing pressure in the second half and with 15 minutes remaining Paul Di Giacomo came close to a breakthrough but his shot came back off the post. Then with less than 10 minutes remaining Allan Grant was brought down in the area by Emerson and 20-year-old Gary Harding stepped forward to fire us in front. We withstood an onslaught for the remainder of the game but held firm to achieve the impossible – we won the Scottish Cup. In 90 minutes we had made history as never before had a Second Division team achieved such a feat.

The prize money alone wiped out our debt and gave us a considerable amount of money in the bank to rebuild the team. With 6 or 8 of our English players all approaching the end of their contracts there would need to be some serious rebuilding before next season.

A momentous season was brought to an end with the Champions League Final and Arsenal triumphed with a 2-0 defeat of FC Bayern.

retired_amyslack

June 2005

As soon as the season officially ended the changes in the playing staff began. Billy Barr and David Holdsworth both retired, Ryan McGuffie made a pre-arranged move to Stirling and Lee Marshall went to Farnborough. Stewart Jack, Kevin Melville and Chris Geddes all finished their loans and returned to their clubs.

Scotland’s World Cup campaign took a blow with a 2-1 defeat at home to Denmark and they slip to 3rd place in their group.

With no less than 8 English players now out of contract the Chairman puts his foot down and insists that they all leave the club. This means that star striker Harding, club captain Paul O’Neill and winger Ryan Errington all depart. The others were fringe players at best but those three will really be missed.

When I meet with the Chairman to discuss the plans for the forthcoming season I am not too impressed with what I hear. He has no plans to invest in the stadium or the training facilities and despite having the best part of £700K in the bank I am allowed just £120K in transfer funds. We now have a total playing strength of 19 players, most of whom are rubbish, we are facing a relegation battle in the First Division and will be playing the UEFA Cup and I go into all that with a pitiful transfer budget and a god-awful stadium. I will be giving serious consideration to my future at the club I think.

I put those thought to one side for the moment and begin to look around for players that the Chairman will accept (this means Scottish and cheap!).

I decide to bid for Kevin Melville and a fee of £2K is agreed with Forfar and he joins the club.


July 2005

I start to look at loan signings and agree to bring in Michael Dunnet from Ross County. He was with us last season until he sustained an injury and he did well for us. Former Celtic youngster Stephen McManus comes in on trial and does well enough to be offered a permanent deal. A number of other trialists come and go and we pick up a few decent looking lads including goalkeeper J. C. Hutchison (20), striker Michael Lau (20), winger Robert Campbell (20) and midfielder Lewis Sloan (17). We also get a couple of experienced campaigners on free signings as well. Central defender Jim Lauchlan has years of SPL experience behind him and full back Duncan Jupp has played in the EPL for Wimbledon.

I accept a couple of surprising invitations for pre-season warm-ups. Hearts are first to visit Raydale Park and are sent packing with a 2-0 defeat but Liverpool fare better, winning 1-0.

retired_amyslack

August 2005

I turn to the loan market to further strengthen the squad with defender Shaun Molloy (20) joining from Dundee United for the season.

All too soon it’s time for our first competitive game of the season, a trip to Queen of the South. With half a dozen new faces in the team things will take time to gel so I am not too unhappy with the 2-2 draw. We fell behind twice, coming back each time to square the game and strikers Cameron and Lau were both on target to open their accounts.

In the Champions League 3rd qualifying round Rangers have a severe setback, losing 2-0 at Slavia Prague. The next evening we participate in another historical event when we play our first ever game in European competition. We travel to Bulgaria to face Neman Grodno, a totally unknown quantity as far as I am concerned. It takes less than 20 minutes for the home side to score but we show some spirit and force their keeper into action on several occasions. The Bulgarians score twice more in the second half but a late gaol from substitute Robert Campbell gives us a glimmer of hope for the return leg.

The next day we complete the signing of another former loan player as midfielder Brian Vaughan joins from Charlton for £80K. Imagine my reaction when the first thing he does is suffer a serious injury in training, requiring surgery and a 6-month layout to rectify the problem!

Our next league match is at home to Inverness Caledonian, the result being another 2-2 draw. We recovered from a goal behind to score twice through Cameron before the visitors tied the game.

We are into cup action next with a home game against St. Mirren in the Challenge Cup. Goals from Lau, Cameron and Grace give us a comfortable 3-0 win as the visitors offered very little threat coming forward.

We are soon back into league action with a visit to St. Johnstone and a solitary goal from Cameron gives us our first win of the season.

A 1-1 draw for Rangers at Ibrox fails to repair the damage of the first leg and they crash out of the Champions League.

We end the month unbeaten on the league and in 3rd place in the table.

retired_amyslack

September 2005

Our first game of the month is the return leg of our UEFA Cup tie. We are chasing a two-goal deficit but a goal from Michael Lau midway through the first half gets us part way there. Then with 20 minutes remaining Alex Grace calmly converts a penalty to tie the aggregate scores. Less than 5 minutes later Cameron gets a third and we survive some late pressure from the visitors to record a historic victory.

In the first round of the League Cup East Stirling of the Third Division rack up an incredible 7-0 win at home to Division One side Inverness Caledonian, one of the biggest results in the club’s history.

Scotland take a big step towards a World Cup Playoff place with a fine 3-1 win in Greece.

Our next game is a Challenge Cup match at Cowdenbeath and a second-string selection wins a marathon penalty shootout after the game ended 2-2. No less than 13 penalties from each side were required to decide the contest. On the same evening Scotland beat Latvia 3-1 to virtually assure the runners-up spot in their group.

Our first league game for some weeks involves a trip north to play Ross County and goals from Lau, Cameron and substitute Andy Scott give us a good 3-0 win.

We find ourselves facing Queens Park in the Challenge Cup Semi Final and an extra-time goal from Stephen McManus is enough to take us to the final. On the same evening Celtic have an excellent 3-1 win at home to Manchester United in the opening game of their Champions League group.

I am concerned about a lack of cover in central defence with only three decent centre backs in the squad so I agree a fee of £80K to bring the experienced Scott Walker from Alloa. The 30-year-old will join when the transfer window opens in January.

A poor performance in our next game allows bottom club Partick Thistle to go home with a 2-1 win.

As we prepare to face Steaua Bucharest in the UEFA Cup full back Mark Birch suffers a dreadful accident in training, fracturing his skull, and he will be out of action for at least 6 months. In the game itself we play quite superbly and win 2-0 with goals from Dunnet and Lau. There were 5 other Scottish teams in action on the same night. Hibs drew 1-1 at Brondby, Kilmarnock lost 3-2 at Club Brugge, Rangers won 2-0 against Grasshopper in Zurich, Hearts won 2-0 at Hajduk and Aberdeen lost 4-0 at Parma.

At the end of the month we sit in 4th place in the table just three points behind leaders Dunfermline. In the monthly awards Martin Cameron is voted Player of the Month.

retired_amyslack

October 2005

A home game against Ayr gets the month going and both sides serve up some attractive attacking football. The visitors go ahead twice but each time we are able to respond, first through Lau and then through Cameron and the game ends 2-2.

Celtic suffer a reverse in the Champions League, losing 1-0 in Milan.

Our next game is a midweek visit from Dunfermline and two goals from Cameron gives us a comfortable 2-0 win.

On our visit to Raith Rovers the strikers are on target again, Cameron with a brace and Lau grabbing a hat trick in our 5-1 win.

World Cup qualifiers give us a weekend off and we can enjoy a wonderful 2-1 win for Scotland in Holland that secures the runners-up place in the group and a place in the playoffs.

We journey to Bucharest to see if we can keep our European adventure alive and despite having some injury problems we defend valiantly until the 88th minute when Steau take the lead. But a stoppage time goal from Grant makes the game totally safe and the fairytale continues as we win 3-1 on aggregate. Hearts, Hibs, Kilmarnock and Rangers all manage to progress too although Aberdeen are well beaten.

It is a tired group of players that face visiting Brechin but we still have more than enough quality to get the win. Goals from Lennon, Grace and Cameron give us a 3-0 victory and three more points.

Celtic suffer another Champions League defeat, losing 2-0 in Shakhtar.

At the end of the month we have a chance to win another trophy as we face Third Division Elgin in the Challenge Cup Final. We prove to be far too strong for the Highlanders and run out easy 4-0 winners with Dunnet, Grant, Grace and McHale providing the goals.

We end the month holding second place in Division One and Martin Cameron is voted Player of the month.

retired_amyslack

November 2005

Despite all of Gretna’s success on the pitch since I arrived at he club, my relationship with the Chairman has been increasingly fraught. I was very unhappy with the transfer budget made available after our triumph last season and the Board’s refusal to even contemplate improvements to the training facilities or start any planning for a stadium expansion has highlighted what seems to me to be a lack of ambition. I have a core of fine players in the squad but without the full backing of the board the club will not be able to sustain the success that we have achieved so far.

After yet another fruitless Board meeting I was feeling increasingly frustrated when I heard that Stirling Albion had sacked manager Allan Moore and on an impulse I called the Chairman. We quickly agreed a deal and I immediately resigned from Gretna. The response from the players and supporters was one of great shock and surprise and I felt a pang of guilt about walking out on them. But I needed a new challenge and I felt that the Stirling Board would offer me the type of support that I needed.

But after a few days in the job I did wonder if I had been a little hasty. The team was bottom of the Third Division with only one win so far this season and the club was saddled with over £500K of debt. On the playing front the club had 32 players on their books and were some £2.5K over their wage budget. After a couple of training sessions it was obvious that there wasn’t a whole lot of quality in the squad so some serious rebuilding would be necessary. But the first priority was to get a steady 4-4-2 formation established, sort out the wheat from the chaff and get some points on the board.

(Author’s Note – I am now entering Stage 2 of the challenge and my objective is to get Stirling into Division One)

My first game in charge was a trip to Elgin and a fairly solid performance ended with a goalless draw. Young right winger Dougie Wilson put in a good display and striker Barry Elliot looked like he could be effective. Both of them had been languishing in the reserves for some reason.

In the Champions League Celtic revived their hopes with an excellent 3-0 win at home to Shakthar.

I was delighted to see Gretna rack up an incredible 5-2 win at home to HSV in the UEFA Cup. Hearts and Rangers both won away from home but Kilmarnock and Hibs suffered defeats.

Our visit to Arbroath gave us our first win under my control. We played well with our speedy young wingers Dougie Wilson and Chris Geddes both starring. Geddes scored our opening goal and striker Elliot added one after the break for a 2-0 win and the three points lifts us off the bottom of the table.

Scotland make a great start in the World Cup Playoff, winning 3-2 in Croatia and a 2-2 draw at Hampden sees them qualify for the Finals.

Our final game of the month is my first match in charge at home and a crowd of some 1,500 see us beat Berwick 3-1. Elliot scores twice and Wilson gets the other in a good win.

Celtic lose 2-0 at Manchester United in the Champions League and will probably need to win their last two games to progress beyond the group stage.

We have now climbed up to 6th place and Elliot and Geddes were both recognised in the monthly awards.