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erm... :p

Ross County 1 (James 64)
Livingston 0

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Match round-up of week 36 from the Dingwall Times on Saturday May 6th 2017

Hamish Brodie reports:

Breathless finale leaves Falkirk wanting

This was a match which saw some neat passing from both sides, but very little in the way of true goalscoring chances as both teams appeared more interested in keeping the ball and looking to create the perfect goal rather than just get the ball upfield and in the back of the net by any means. It wasn't until the 88th minute that the action hotted up as Ben Baldwin felled Michael Thomson in the Livingston penalty area to concede a penalty which Andy Williams calmly slotted home to give Falkirk a lead which would see them remain top of the table unless Ross County hit 5 without reply against Dundee United. Ultimately how many County would score would become irrelevent as points rather than goal difference would be likely to seperate the two teams come the end of the season, Livingston's Bryan Stewart equalising within a minute of the kickoff to leave Falkirk rueing their missed chances.

Livingston 1 (Stewart 89)
Falkirk 1 (Williams pen 88)


Four goals salvo for rampant County

Ross County made a welcome return to goalscoring form at Victoria Park this afternoon as a fast fading Dundee United side came north knowing that anything other than a win would see them mathematically out of contention for the title. You wouldn't have thought they were a side needing the win though as they played some of their worst football of the season, creating just a single shot on target in the whole match. Ross County on the other hand, despite firing 10 shots off target did manage 7 on target and more importantly, 4 of them hit the back of the United net. Mark McGlynn opened the scoring with a deflected shot off Mark Kerr in the 15th minute with a Nick James penalty on 35 sending the home side in with a 2-0 lead at the break. Further goals in the second half from Kevin Watson and James again eased County to a 4-0 win as Utd's Allan Andreasen blazed an injury time penalty over the bar to conclude a miserable day and a folorn end to the season for the Tannadice team.

Ross County 4 (McGlynn 15; James pen 35, 84; Watson 49; Lewis s/o 90)
Dundee United 0 (Andreasen m/pen 90)

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Match round-up of week 37 from the Dingwall Times on Saturday May 13th 2017

Glasgwegian doom for title contenders sets up final day clash

Hamish Brodie reports:

The footballing gods were not smiling on the two title challengers today as both faced Glasgegian opposition on a day which could have seen the title won, but it seems those selfsame footballing gods preferred the idea of a final day showdown between the two title protagonists.

At Ibrox today, Rangers proved too good for a tired Ross County side, many of whose players played a major role in Scotland's Euro 2016 glory last summer and are now feeling the effects of a long season on top of their sumer exertions. Daniel Ibáñez and Craig Nicol scored the all important goals in the first half, leaving County with a mountain to climb in the second 45 minutes. Kevin Watson gave them hope with a goal squeezed past the 'keeper on 65 minutes, but the better team won on the day.

Meanwhile, over in Falkirk, Rangers' great rivals were also doing their bit put a dent in the charge of one of the two title rivals as they ran out narow 0-1 winners, Mike Lucas scoring the only goal of a game which Celtic controlled for the most part.

Full time scores:

Glasgow Rangers 2-1 Ross County
Falkirk 0-1 Glasgow Celtic

And so we head for Victoria Park next Sunday for a win or bust clash between the top two sides in the SPL. County go into the match needing just a draw to clinch their 8th title in a row as they hold a 2 point lead over their rivals. However, for those thinking that those footballing gods could have set up the finale even better by giving Falkirk home advantage, here's a point to consider - the 3 previous league meetings between these two teams these teams have all been won by the away team so maybe Falkirk won't be too unhappy at having 3 away games to just 1 home game against Ross County this season.

Don't miss the Dingwall Times next week as we bring you news on the destiny of the SPL title!

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Match report from week 38 from the Dingwall Times on Sunday May 21st 2017

8 in a row for relentless County

Hamish Brodie reports:

It has been an exciting season and far closer than the last 7 seasons, but ultimately the final outcome was the same as Ross County's tired players rose for 1 more challenge as Falkirk came to Victoria Park having won on their previous 2 visits in the league. It had been billed as a fantastic title showdown, winner takes all, but in the end it was a rather one-sided affair as County got their act together to finish the season in some style.

To be fair, Falkirk created a fair few chances and it wasn't so much the balance of play that was one-sided, only the scoreline as Kevin Black kept a clean sheet in the County goal in the face of numerous Falkirk shots on target. Richard Rhodes opened the scoring with a trademark exquisite freekick, left-fotted from the edge of the area, curled around the wall with pinpoint accuracy into the top left corner of the net. The 2nd half began well for County, settling the nerves of the home fans who knew a draw would be good enough for them - Mark McGlynn doubled the lead on 46 minutes before Alan Reid netted his 16th goal of a superb season from the right wing. McGlynn wrapped up the rout on 77 minutes with another neat finish to put the seal on County's 8th title in a row. With Falkirk and Dundee United both pushing County all the way and the old firm showing signs of a recovery of late next season could be County's toughest yet as they go in search of the record-equalling 9 SPL titles in a row.

FT: Ross County 4-0 Falkirk

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Special football feature from Scotland Today on Saturday 30th September 2017

Crisis in Glasgow - surely time for change?

John Bird reports:

There were signs of stirrings towards the end of last season by Glasgow's big two as they both finished in the top half of the table for the first time in many seasons and threw a number of spanners in the works of the top three fighting for the title. Hopes were high that the two fallen giants could build on that to challenge for the title this year, but now, 6 matches into the season the cold stark truth is all to clear - the false dawn of last season has been well and truly blasted away with the SPL table making sorry reading for fans of the Old Firm:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Holders - Ross County Pos Inf Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1st Ross County 6 6 0 0 19 6 +13 18 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2nd Motherwell 6 4 1 1 10 6 +4 13 3rd Livingston 6 3 2 1 10 5 +5 11 4th Falkirk 6 3 1 2 10 6 +4 10 5th Aberdeen 6 3 1 2 6 6 0 10 6th Dundee Utd 6 2 2 2 9 7 +2 8 7th Clyde 6 2 2 2 9 10 -1 8 8th Dundee 6 2 2 2 6 7 -1 8 9th St. Johnstone 6 2 1 3 7 10 -3 7 10th Hibs 6 2 1 3 7 12 -5 7 11th Rangers 6 0 1 5 3 13 -10 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 12th Celtic 6 0 0 6 6 14 -8 0 </pre>

With Rangers' single point at home to Clyde, having gone a goal down, last week representing the only point between the pair it is surely time for a major change in the way these two former great clubs are run now. Fans have been short-changed season after season with a succession of failing managers at both clubs - Celtic are on their 10th manager in as many seasons after the sacking of Martin O'Neill which is clearly a situation which is not likely to lead to stability and progress for the club. Rangers likewise have been through a similar number of managers, most of them foreign managers who bring in a succession of ageing foreign players on large wages who repeatedly fail to perform.

Sitting at the top of the table and champions for the last 8 seasons, Ross County are a clear example of how a club should be run - they are now light years ahead of the Old Firm yet have spent only ~£1 million on transfer fees for each year in the SPL with a large proportion of the squad, including many of the Scotland national team, having come through their youth academy with a visionary chairman who had an aim and pursued it ruthlessly having identified the manager he wanted and winning promotion from Division 1. The Old Firm should take a long hard look at themselves and their policy in recent seasons.

It is now 50 years since the famous Lisbon Lions of Glasgow Celtic won the European Cup with a team made up of Scots all of whom came from within 25 miles of the city and a number of that famous winning team have been highly scathing of their beloved club in recent years as they see Ross County, inspired by their own success, win the European Cup 3 times in a row with an entirely Scottish squad.

Glasgow is a footballing city - there is no doubt about that. Anyone who has been to a Glasgow derby will know the passion of the two teams' supporters and yet both clubs seem to totally ignore the potential of this large city. If Ross County can build a championship winning squad and a squad to conquer Europe from the tiny town of Dingwall and its environs, the potential of this great city for young footballing talent is surely enough for both clubs to develop a team full of proud Scots who know just what it means to play for these Glasgow giants. In a city were there is still a lot of poverty, football is something which unites people and allows them to put aside the problems of the rest of their lives, yet what hope is there for the young kids, playing football in the streets of this city if the two big clubs whom they idolise ignore their local talent in favour of overpaid and overhyped foreigners who just don't know what it means to play for these two huge clubs.

If Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers don't get their acts together soon and bring about a huge change in the way they are run, this great city could well see it's two famous clubs fighting a fatal relegation battle with the consequences of getting relegated being unthinkable for either club.

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Interview from the Dingwall Times on Sunday October 1st 2017

Ross County chairman Archie McLaren speaks exclusively to Hamish Brodie

Ross County chairman Archie McLaren is not one for the limelight. He is the driving force behind the Ross County revolution and is adored by the fans, yet prefers to let his manager and players take the public glory whilst he gets on with his job efficiently behind the scenes to make Ross County one of the premier clubs in world football. In his first major interview for many years, I found Archie in expansive mood when I caught up with him this morning to chat about the pressures and joys of being a club chairman at Ross County

Hamish: Archie, you've been Ross County chairman for almost 20 years now. Could you ever have believed back that you could be sitting here with a trophy room bulging with silverware?

Archie: Och, of course not Hamish. You were here, writing for the Dingwall Times all those years ago and we were still a relatively new club in the Scottish football league, looking for promotion to Division 1.

Hamish: It was a brave decision when you appointed a totally unknown manager with no footballing experience, but you must be delighted that you took that chance, looking back.

Archie: It's always a risk when you appoint a new manager Hamish, even an experienced manager can struggle at a club with limited resources and we weren't in a position to attract a big name manager anyway. I'd known Adam for a few years since he and my son were at Uni together and they often came back here during the vacations to do some walking in the Highlands and even though he didn't have a football background he was an avid follower of the game and had a good tactical brain even then and most of all, he had a passion and a passion which matched my own, a passion to see a team of proud Scots run out there on the football field and win the biggest prizes that football had to offer.

Hamish: Fast-forwarding a little then, after a solid first season, you won promotion to the SPL on the final day of the manager's second season - how did that feel for you, as chairman?

Archie: Of course it was a great day for the club and for me - our aim when we arrived in the SFL was to reach the SPL and to do it so quickly was a dream come true. It was a tense final day though after we had lost our lead at the top. I seem to remember that we drew 2-2 here and Clyde also managed a 2-2 draw down at Queen of the South so we squeezed up ahead of them, but I was really nervous that day!

Hamish: And then that first season in the SPL - what a turnaround?

Archie: Yeah, I think we were bottom of the table at christmas and everyone was saying we'd be sure to get relegated, but in truth the table was really close, but I never expected that Adam would transform that struggling side into a team who eventually finished 3rd just 6 months later - it was remarkable and laid down the foundations for the next 10 years of success.

Hamish: Could you have feasibly extended the youth academy to be as successful as it is now without that onfield success so soon?

Archie: Well, we already had a good youth academy when we were in the first division - at the end of Adam's first season we saw the likes of Nick James, John MacDonald and David Dunne come through and look where they are now. As for the changes, extensions and generally turning the facility into one of the best in Europe, of course that was made easier by us having the success when we did, but it was always a long term plan to develop our youth.

Hamish: You mentioned those players there. It must give you a huge sense of pride when a Scotland squad is announced and you see your players making up ~50% of the whole squad, and many of them players who have come through the academy.

Archie: I think we have been very lucky with the quality of our youngsters in past seasons, but there was a lot of hard work there as well. In recent seasons we haven't had quite the same level of quality players coming through as in earlier seasons, but we have time on our side now since we have a good team - earlier we were still building the team so youngsters were thrown in early, but now those youngsters are well established and it is harder for the new ones to break in. It is great when I see our players scoring for Scotand though - we now have 4 players I think into double figures for international goals which is superb and Alan Reid's hat-trick from the right wing against South Korea in the Confederations Cup was just superb.

Hamish: You've won 8 SPL titles in a row now, but last season was a lot tougher than previously. I know you are a man with a keen knowledge of the history of the game and will want to equal the 9 in a row record or Rangers and Celtic - do you think you will manage it this season.

Archie: Well, we've started very strongly this year so I am very hopeful. I think the problem last year was that there was a bit of a hangover from so many of our players being in the Scotland Euro 2016 squad and then of course we lost 5-3 to Dundee United on the opening day of the season and struggled to find form after that, but this year it's much better. We did miss Alan Reid for the start of last season though and I know the manager rates him very highly - he has always said that we are a team and no player is indispensible if they are injured, but I think Alan is that final cog who makes the whole team click so much better and without him we just aren't the same.

Hamish: You've been watching football for over 50 years now Archie. How do the current Ross County players match up among the best Scottish players you have watched?

Archie: It's difficult to compare players from different generations Hamish, I grew up watching the Celtic side of the 60s and those Lisbon Lions of '67 will forever be in my heart as one of the best teams I ever saw. As for our current players, our captain Nick James is probably the most complete defender I have ever seen, even including those in that Lisbon Lions team - he has been rock solid at the back for us ever since the Age of 15 and he's a Dingwall lad too. Richard Rhodes is one of the most naturally gifted wingers I have ever seen too - he maybe lacks the pace to be right up there as the greatest Scottish winger I've ever seen because we've had a few, but he is a talent. And then there's Alan Reid of course...I don't want to pile pressure on him and over-hype him and all that because the national media do too much of that anyway and it can get too much for a player, but from my heart I can honestly say that I have never seen so talented a pleyer in all my years watching football - I would hesitate to say he is the best Scottish footballer of all time because he is only 24 and time will tell - already he is up there amongst the best, but soon the die will be cast as to just how he develops into his late 20's - he has the ability to light up the world stage at the 2018 world cup if he can keep his temperemant under control - whether he will or not we'll all have to wait and see.

Hamish: Finally Archie, how do you see the club currently in the wider scheme of things and what are the aims for the future, especially in the wake of that shock 10-1 defeat to Manchester United last year.

Archie: Ooh, don't mention that Hamish - it was the lowest point for this club in the last 10 years - I know Adam was shocked, the players were shocked, the fans were and so was I, but we must move on and come back this year stronger than ever to regain our Champions League crown.

We reached a real crunch point last season with numerous players' contracts up for renewal and I had to sit down with the manager and we really had to take a hard look at things and decide were we saw this club being in 5 years because we have top players now and they demand top wages - we had to decide whether we could pay those wages to keep them here or turn again to our youth system and bring in more youngsters and let the older players move on. In the end we decided we would do all we could to keep them here because this team are good enough to pay for themselves. It is a risk though - without giving exact details, our top earners are now on &gt; £30,000 per week and our total wage bill is in the region of £17-20 million per year. We've made a profit of ~£7 million the last few years despite improvements to the ground costing money, but that all stems from success on the field - with that wage bill, if we have a bad season and fail to qualify for the Champions League, that £7 million profit will soon turn into £5 million + debt for a season. Now I can't see that happening at the moment - if I could we wouldn't have given such large contracts, but the pressure is on and we have to bear it in mind constantly - we don't have the fanbase of Rangers and Celtic with 50,000 attendances to pay the wages - we rely on the European money. That said, we are in a very strong financial position and could absorb those losses for a few seasons, but only if we then return to winning ways.

Hamish: Well, thank you for talking to us Archie and best of luck for the season. The fans here in Dingwall are all fully behind you and are crossing their fingers for that nine in a row!