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It was quite a sight. Looking out onto the Fir Park pitch and watching storied Manchester United warming up. It certainly was intimidating for our young club- seeing Beckham, Keane, Giggs, van Nistlerooy, Cole, and last season's English Player of the Year Juan Sebastien Veron warming up to face us. We paid for that awe in the 4th minute when Varon caught Alan Archibald flat footed and knocked a header past Brownie on a cross from Beckham. They quickly found out we might be a young side, but we are plucky as we battled them and actually were taking control of the midfield for stretches. In the 28th minute it was Steven Hammell's brilliant looping cross that Stephen Pearson got a head on and deflected past Fabien Barthez to even the match at 1-1. The fans were buzzing at halftime as we had staved off a furious ManU rally late in the first half to keep it at the same score going to halftime. Kiegan Parker left with an ankle injury early in the 2nd half and that forced me to move Steven Nicholas up to forward to replace a tiring Kevin Twaddle. It turned into a divine move when Nicholas scored his first goal of the season at 78 minutes when Pearson chipped a pass to him. We couldn't withstand the ManU flurry to close the match and Veron got free to score his 2nd of the match at 86 minutes. We wound up with a 2-2 draw, a result that was certainly acceptable to me- but I couldn't help thinking how nice it would have been to actually beat them...
In the first round, first leg of UEFA competition- Aberdeen and Dundee both won at home by 1-0 margins. Celtic took an easy 3-0 win, but Rangers were stunned at Ibrox as Vitesse upset them 1-0 and put them in dire straights for their 2nd leg.
We continued our inconsistent play when we travelled to Dens Park to face Dundee. A hard fought first half saw us head to halftime even at 1-1 as Georgy Nemsadze scored early for them and Stephen Pearson drilled his 5th of the season later for us. Iain Nicholson and Juan Sara took advantage of poor defensive coverage, especially on the part of struggling rightback Maurice Ross, and scored to put Dundee up 3-1 and looking like they were home free. Desperate to generate some spark in our offense, Steven Milne came on for Michael Craig and Scott Leitch replaced Billy McKinlay. Every now and then you get lucky and make the perfect move at the perfect time. Milne scored right after Sara's goal to bring us back to 3-2 and then five minutes later Kevin Twaddle scored the equalizer as Mark Kerr was making exquisite passes to set up the goals. While Dundee tried to shake off the stunning development, Kerr had one more sensational cross and Milne headed it past Michael Atkinson for the match winning goal. Dundee lost most of their will when we took the lead and it was just a matter of us closing out the win.
Next in our Champions Cup Group play was a trip to face Dinamo Kiev. I knew we couldn't take them lightly, hell we couldn't take any club lightly- and win. They had gone into hostile Galatasary and emerged with a 2-1 win, so they obviously had talent. We had several players tired from the Dundee match, but the only one I held out was Kevin Twaddle. That meant with Parker still out- it was Martin Wood and Steven Milne up front for us. Little did I know that I had unleashed the dynamic duo for this match. Kiev hadn't seen the kind of pressure we applied in the midfield and we had gained some confidence from the 2-2 draw with Manchester United. It turned out they couldn't handle the pressure and our passing attack as Milne struck for a goal midway through the half and then made a pair of pretty passes as Martin Wood scored his first two goals of the season in a 7 minute span. Suddenly we were ahead of them 3-0 and really forcing the play. They were content to fend us off and try and change their gameplan at halftime. In the second half they were a bit more cautious and that kept us from attacking much- since we were content to contest the midfield at that point. At 65 minutes we got a bonus goal from Stephen Whalen after he subbed on for a tiring Stephen Pearson and he sailed past their defense before rocketing a shot past struggling Alexndr Filimonov. The 4-0 win was a key win in setting us up for success in the Group, especially when Galatasary surprised ManU at Old Trafford and fashioned a 1-1 draw.
Promoted St. Mirren was next to visit Fir Park, and it seemed a very good time to rest the regulars. Martin Wood made certain my choice looked good when he scored in the first minute of play off a cross from Marthin Fotheringham. Stephen Whalen scored midway through the half and when Sergei Baltacha was redcarded late in the half- our visitors looked like they had little life left in them. Neil Scally cemented MOM honors with the lone goal in the 2nd half as we finished off a solid 3-0 win.
Hosting Galatasary we had a golden chance to improve our chances of getting out of the group. Instead we committed a defensive blunder in the 2nd half and handed them a 3-2 win in a match that we outplayed them in. They scored first as Birdal Coskun fired a low shot past Brownie. We quickly rallied and went ahead on goals by Mark Kerr and Kevin Twaddle. Just as quickly they were back to 2-2 when Pavel Horvath sent a header home. It was a taut match in the 2nd half and both clubs were struggling to get some offense rolling. Midway through Richard Montgomery made a youngster's mistake and overplayed a header that allowed Umit Karan to get behind him. Karan made a good move and took it around Brownie for what would be the match winner.
The schedule sure was starting to pile up and our trip to St.Johnstone seemed all too soon after the loss to Galatasary. Martin Lauchlan stung us when he gave them an early lead, but we struck back quickly as Steven Milne and Stephen Whalen scored three minutes apart to put us in the lead. Steven Nicholas added another goal and we were up 3-1 at half. St.Johnstone was intent on making things interesting and pressed us in the 2nd half- getting back to within a goal when John Paul McBride scored midway through. We finally clinched the match when Kiegan Parker, just back from injury, scored in 2nd half extra time to finish off a 4-2 win. With almost a quarter of the schedule gone- Rangers and Celtic were dueling for the top spot and we had managed to move up and hang around just off their pace in 3rd.
It was good to see that all the Scottish Clubs moved on in UEFA as Rangers rallied to beat Vitesse on the road by a 2-1 margin.
We travelled to Livingston with a place in the League Cup Quarterfinal awarded to the winner. Our first half play was not particularly sharp and the Division 1 side earned a 2-1 halftime lead as Quino scored in the opening moments and then Vincent Sullivan headed past John Connolly in extra time. Our goal in the first half was Martin Wood capitalizing on slipping his marker. We came out strong in the 2nd half and Martin Fotheringham scored his 1st of the season in the opening moments to even it at 2-2. Both clubs were struggling for the key next goal when I brought on Jermaine McSporran for a tiring Kevin Twaddle. McSporran's pace split the game wide open as he ran onto a long pass and then fired a looping shot past Marius Rovde to finally gain us the lead at 74 minutes. Fotheringham then sent a blazing cross the McSporran deflected for the match clinching goal at 83 minutes. The win gave us the wonderful opportunity to travel to Celtic Park and face off against them in the Quarterfinals.
Brownie earned a very tough first Cap for Scotland- as he was selected as keeper in their match in Paris against France. Predictably, France won the match- though the 2-0 score reflected well on his efforts in net.
Kilmarnock visited Fir Park next. They hadn't done too well this season, but remained a very tough foe- especially with Colin Stewart in net, someone who had stymied us before. Stewart and friendly posts and crossbars kept the visitors in the match in the first half. We swarmed around their net- but couldn't score. In one sequence Steven Milne hit the post and Mark Kerr drilled one off the crossbar. We finally broke through against Stewart when Stephen Pearson deflected a Craig McEwen looping cross over Stewart at 62 minutes. It looked like the match was over when Jermain McSporran (on for tiring Steven Milne) notched our 2nd goal at 84 minutes as he vollyed a winner on a pass from Kiegan Parker, but Kilmarnock didn't have any quit in them and came roaring back when Craig Dargo drove a low shot past Brownie. We didn't yield in the closing moments though and hung on for the 2-1 win.
Partick Thistle stomped on Stenhousemuir to win the Scottish Challenge Cup by a 6-1 margin. Their free flowing attack in the match looked very similar to ours and it was a bit surprising to hear veteran manager John Lambie comment that he taken some of our ideas and adapted them for his club.
Our return match against Galatasaray was next and with our loss to them at Fir Park, we had put ourselves in a situation where we almost needed a win to have a chance of advancing from our Group. The early portions of the first half we really put our best foot forward and Kevin Twaddle was our leader as he scored a pair of goals on blistering low shots past Inan Kerem. Our youth and inexperience showed then- as we relaxed and they were all over us. Capone and Umat Karan struck three minutes apart and suddenly we were back to 2-2 and into halftime with them having all the momentum. Starting the second half, you could see something different about the club. To my eyes, it looked like the grim determination of a seasoned club, and after losing to them in that close 2nd half at Fir Park it looked like we wanted to return the favor. Twaddle nailed his hat-trick with a header on a superb pass from Mark Kerr and we were back in the lead. Wanting to show them something different, we switched into a more defensive outlook- it was something I didn't do often. It confused them and seemed to throw them enough out of their rythym that they allowed Steven Hammell to break in on the left side with a blast. Kerem parried the shot, but Billy McKinlay picked a perfect moment to come up with his 1st goal of the season to make it 4-2. They came back at us, but when Umat Karan's goal was ruled off on his offside at 83 minutes- that removed the last vestige of heart from them and we finished out the match quietly. The win meant that if we could beat Dinamo Kiev- our chances of finishing 2nd to ManU were good- we had the goal differential on Galatasary due to our win.
Our weekend league tilt worried me as we hosted Aberdeen. They were right behind us in the standings in 4th place, but I still had to go with our 2nd line players in the match as most of the first liners were still knackered from the hard match at Galatasary. Depth is why you can succeed in both Europe and at home and it was an important test for us. Willie Howie scored at 30 minutes to send the Fir Park faithful into a frenzy, but Derren Young remained a nemesis for us- I swear he saved all his goals up to score against us- he wasn't that much of a scorer- and he evened the match by beating Brownie at 37 minutes. The second half was a struggle and we had several players tiring- but I felt I couldn't afford to remove them because of the way the match was playing out. It paid off when Howie found Keith Lasley alone and Lasley picked an opportune moment to score his first goal of the season at the 75 minute mark. We had to survive another close chance from Young and also from Derek Young before we could claim the close 2-1 win.
The announcement that Celtic had purchased young Spanish midfielder David Hernandez from Kilmarnock for 3.2 Million had me worried. He was a promising player and the last thing we needed was for them to get stronger.
Playing at Old Trafford was about as intimidating a place as you can imagine for our young squad. Still, we were ready to battle them and during the scoreless first half we gave them all they could handle. Fabien Barthez made a fantastic reaction save when Gary Neville deflected a hard Stephen Pearson shot. Mark Kerr had a wonderful chance when he broke in alone and beat Barthez with a rising shot, but it carromed off the upright and we were still scoreless at halftime. In the second half, we couldn't handle powerful Ruud van Nistlerooy. He gave ManU the lead at 70 minutes after Brownie made an excellent parry of an Andy Cole blast. He finished us off at 82 minutes when Gary Neville crossed to him at the far corner of the net and he knocked it past a diving Brownie. The loss was disappointing, but we gave a good effort and were in the match for much of the way. I thought that was a very encouraging sign of our development. We also got a huge boost when Dinamo Kiev crushed Galatasary by a 4-0 margin. It meant that if we could win or draw at Fir Park against Dinamo Kiev, we would advance as the 2nd place club in the Group.
Our road trip to Dundee United was spoiled by the hot goalkeeping of Paul Jarvie. He made several sensational stops and kept us off the board, which was enough to allow them to beat us 1-0 when Tassos Venetis chipped one over Brownie midway through the first half. Good execution, good effort- lousy result, it happens like that sometimes.
In UEFA Cup 2nd round Aberdeen and Celtic moved on, but Rangers were knocked out by Ajax and Dundee was crushed by CSKA Sofia.
We were off to a flyer as we hosted Hibs when Steven Milne deflected a Keith Lasley cross past Dirk Heinen in the 2nd minute. Hibs got theirs right back when Steven Tosh strolled through our backline and blasted it past John Connolly. Martin Wood put us back on top midway through the half as he pounced on a rebound and put it over Heinen. Hibs was rallying in the opening moments of the 2nd half when Willie Howie raced away on their defense. When Heinen was forced to pull him down as he went around him it earned him a redcard and Maurice Ross converted the penalty kick for a 3-1 lead. Hibs was demoralized at that point and we kept continual pressure on them- including Paul Ritchie's first goal for us on a corner to make the final margin 4-1.
Our chances of moving on to the 2nd round of Champions Cup Group Play were in our hands as we faced Dinamo Kiev at Fir Park. We started out on the wrong foot when Brownie missed an easy shot and Vitaly Kosovskiy wound up with his first ever goal at the 8 minute mark. We didn't panic and turned up the midfield pressure on them. The pressure generated many chances, but Alexandr Filimonov was everywhere and we were getting frustrated with our inability to get one by him. Kevin Twaddle showed once again how much of a clutch player he was when he outraced a defender and then angled a shot past Filimonov off the post to square things at 1-1. It looked like we had gone up 2-1 late in the half when Steven Nicholas scored, but the goal was ruled off on the offside call on Nicholas. It was a nervous start to the 2nd half and Kiev came very close to retaking the lead, but Brownie made a dazzling stop on Alexandr Melaschenko. Everyone breathed a big sigh of relief when Andrey Nesmachny deflected a blistering shot by Nicholas past Filimonov to put us up 2-1. Kiev had heart, but we had the better club and Mark Kerr pounced on a rebound to finish them off in the 3-1 win that meant we advanced.
Our reward for advancing- a Group with Bayern, Juventus and Real Madrid.
01-25-2004, 04:53 AM
When We Were Lions (Lisbon Lions Challenge) Post #24
Thanks Educated *chuckle* I don't worry too much about it- the boys needed this type of experience at the time anyway
***
I had been warning the boys all season that we were in everyone's bullseye- as holders in the SPL- and they couldn't afford to take any match lightly. We received a vivid demonstration of that in our trip to East End Park to face last place Dunfermline. Stewart Petrie outleaped Paul Ritchie and headed past Brownie to give them a quick 1-0 lead. We were fortunate to head to halftime even at 1-1 due to Keith Lasley's header past Derek Stillie on what would be our only shot on goal in the first half. At halftime, we made some adjustments and played better in the 2nd half- finally shutting down their midfield. At 57 minutes Lasley made a looping pass in that Steven Milne volleyed past a surprised Stillie for what would turn out to be the match winning goal. Both clubs battled hard down the stretch, but good chances were few with both defensive coverages performing effectively.
The day after the match Billy Macdonald came to me with a request to be placed on the transfer list. I explained that I would not put him on the transfer list at his request, but that I would place him on the transfer list at my request. I didn't explain it to him, but I refuse to let the player control his placement on the list- it needs to be at the club's option in my view.
We had our golden chance for revenge against Celtic as we hosted them at Fir Park- but they showed us why they are such a strong club this season. The early going was wonderful- we were very sharp and Steven Nicholas scored at 24 minutes to give us the lead. When Kevin Twaddle also scored the fans were buoyant- as was I. Celtic quickly rallied as Emile Heskey overpowered Richard Montgomery to head past Brownie at 34 minutes. We still took the lead to halftime, but everyone could sense the momentum shift to them early in the 2nd half. They evened the match at 2-2 when Chris Sutton outleaped Alan Archibald and deflected it past Brownie. We all went home completely disappointed when our nemesis, Joos Valgaeren, headed a free kick from Heskey past Brownie at 85 minutes for the match winning goal. The loss means we are nearing midseason and Celtic and Rangers are basically running away in the top 2 spots at present.
Opening our 2nd round Champions Cup Group Play after the disheartening loss was tough. The boys were tired from the grueling Celtic match and then we had to turn around and play Juventus- but at least it was at Fir Park. It may have been Tuesday night, but it was a packed house and our fans saw themselves a match!. Tired or not, we were out to show all the pundits who were writing our chances off that we belonged in the 2nd round. Early on, Juventus was showing us why they are leading Serie A, as their crisp passing was making us scramble and we couldn't get anything working. They took the lead when Paul Ritchie was called for pushing Marcelo Salas in the area and Alessandro Del Piero converted the penalty kick at 26 minutes. I am certain our fans thought things were a bit grim at that point, but Kevin Twaddle stepped up and gave us his veteran leadership again. He and Mark Kerr took over in the offensive end and only the fact that Giunluigi Buffon was in the form that won him European Keeper of the Year last season prevented us from evening the match. Twaddle also was unlucky and rang one hard off the post past Buffon. In extra time, Kerr's sleight of dribble and lob pass put Twaddle in alone on Buffon and as he challenged Kevin, he surprised him by a beatiful lobbed shot that went over Buffon from 25 yards to send us to halftime even at 1-1. We stunned them in the opening moments of the 2nd half as Steven Nicholas scorched a shot past Buffon from the edge of the area. They were a veteran club and didn't even waver as they turned up the heat on Brownie. He kept them at bay until Pavel Nedved deflected a cross from Matteo Brighi for the equalizer at 58 minutes. They forced more of the play after that- but Brownie was stellar and kept them at two. We missed one more golden chance when Mark Kerr's rising shot sailed past Buffon, but bounced firmly back off the crossbar. The 2-2 draw was a nice statement on how our club is developing. In the other half of our Group Real Madrid hosted Bayern and handily beat them 2-0.
Back to League play and we were set to face off against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. It was a match where I was resting some of our first line players and that worked well as super performances by both Mark Kerr and Stephen Whalen were enough to allow us to edge them 3-2. Whalen scored a pair of first half goals as he bedeviled the Kilmarnock backline with his pace and elusiveness. They rallied early in the 2nd half when new acquisition Alex Burke scored on his debut for them. We went back up 3-1 when Kerr crossed to Steven Milne for a half-volleyed winner past Colin Stewart at 66 minutes. It was a needed goal as Kilmarnock stormed back and Andy McLaren blistered a shot past Brownie to make it 3-2 with ten minutes left. We survived their try to even the match and finally fended them off to hang on for the win.
We dominated Dundee in our next match at Fir Park, but we ran into a brick wall named David Klein. The Frenchman allowed us a 2nd minute goal from Mark Kerr, but nothing else. Dundee evened the match in the 15th minute when Juan Sara escaped Paul Ritchie's marking and drove a shot past John Connolly. The match turned into a bitter disappointment for us when we controlled most of the 2nd half, only to see Patrizio Billio head a cross from Iain Nicholson past Connolly in extra time to give the visitors a 2-1 win.
I always hesitate when discussing officiating, because generally nothing good can come from any criticism, but frustration got the better of me following our 2-1 loss to Hearts at Tynecastle Park. The referee had overruled his assistant and took away an early equalizer by Steven Nicholas after Scott Wilson's header past Brownie had given them the early lead. He then waved off a flag in the area as Martin Wood was knocked down. We managed to finally even the match at 1-1 when Wood scored at 57 minutes only to see the referee whistled Alan Archibald for bumping Gary Wales in the area. All our players were furiously protesting when Richard Hastings fired the penalty kick past Brownie. We were left with another frustrating loss as Antti Niemi was superb in keeping our desperate rallies away as we tried to get back to even. Rangers and Celtic fought to a 3-3 draw to leave Rangers still leading by a point as we trail far behind in 3rd place at the mid-season mark. We also lost Maurice Ross for three months due to a knee injury.
I think such a Euro draw is a good thing at this stage tbh. If you lose, well its a learning experience, and if you win anything, well its a huge bonus You're doing pretty will still.
01-28-2004, 11:29 AM
When We Were Lions (Lisbon Lions Challenge) Post #27
I agree with your sentiments about the draw PM7- might as well have the challenge there- as later you will anyways...
***
See that picture there? Yes, that one on the right- Brownie stretched full out, turning a shot around the post. That picture is from the match when we travelled to Munich to meet Bayern in Champions Cup. That picture tells the story of the match. Brownie was invincible that day. He turned away 16 shots from one of the top clubs in Europe and we managed a scoreless draw. What is even more amazing- we didn't have a shot on goal in the entire match- they were that dominating. They threw everything and the kitchen sink- but Brownie had it all covered. We certainly didn't deserve the draw- but he earned it for us. Real Madrid beat Juventus 1-0 at Torino to move to the top of the Group.
In UEFA competition, both Aberdeen (past Croatia's Rijeka) and Celtic (crushed Rosenberg) moved on to the 4th round of play.
We finally got back to winning ways when we hosted St.Johnstone at Fir Park. Steven Milne struck twice in the first 10 minutes of play and we made those goals stand up for a 2-1 win. John Paul McBride scored in first half extra time to give the visitors some hope, but their chances vanished when Alan Main was redcarded in the 69th minute for clipping Willie Howie's foot. Even when Keith Lasley missed the penalty, we still maintained control of the remainder of the match.
It was time for another shot at Celtic. This time it was the League Cup Quarterfinal at Celtic Park. They controlled the first half of play and it was no surprise that Brownie finally missed one as Didier Agathe scored at 40 minutes to gain them the halftime lead. We were sporting a different lineup as Stephen Whalen had played too well to ignore and was starting with Steven Nicholas moving up to forward for the match. Whalen scored on a booming shot past Robert Douglas to even the match at 53 minutes and suddenly we had some momentum. Douglas stopped a pair of point blank chances from Kevin Twaddle and Brownie did the same on Emile Heskey and Chris Sutton. It was extra time for us when the 1-1 score held and both clubs suffered significant injuries at the start of extra time as Heskey left for them and Mark Kerr went off for us. In the 2nd half of extra time, Whalen scored a total fluke past Douglas as his lofted cross curled and caught the inside of the post. Celtic rallied once again as Ole Gunnar Solskaer (on for Heskey) drove a shot past Brownie. This time though fate was with us and Kevin Twaddle's volley eluded Douglas for the match winning goal in the last moments of extra time. It was a tough win- but one that we deserved. All I can remember thinking is *finally!* when we beat them.
Yep, that was the time it happened. I remember receiving all kinds of humorous grief over it- but look how he turned out. Everyone kidded me about trying to corner the market on young Scottish midfielders, but they didn't realize how close to the truth those comments were. I *was* trying to grab the best and brightest of the young Scots and Ross O'Donoghue was the best 19 year old I had seen in Scotland. Aberdeen was loathe to let him go- but 4.2 Million was too much for them to turn down. It worked well for us in another way- in that Aberdeen was both 4th and also our League Cup Semi-final opponent, so it certainly undercut their talent when they let him come to us. Why did I want him? Well, we had a cinderella season when we won the SPL, but the realities were starting to set in for us this season. Stephen Pearson was a great midfielder, but he wasn't comfortable as a playmaker. Kerr was doing a terrific job dishing the ball out for us, but was more comfortable working from the wing rather than the middle. Steven Nicholas was doing ok- but the Scottish Manager Kenny Dalglish had suggested to me that Steven really prospered when used up front- so it made sense to move him up to forward occasionally. Stephen Whalen was also coming on strong- as evidenced by the Celtic League Cup match. It was an embarassment of riches- but I also had a 17 Million transfer fund, so could afford to try and grab the players I wanted at the time.
You know the discouraging thing about heading into our makeup match hosting Rangers (it was our first time against them that season) was the fact that both 'Gers and Celtic had only lost 1 match each at this time of the season. Even if we had played as well as we did last season, we couldn't have kept up with that torrid pace. We stung them in the first half of the match when Stephen Pearson struck at 34 minutes off a good pass from Billy McKinlay to give us the lead. Rangers had the jump in the 2nd half though and we looked tired as they were a step ahead of us all over the pitch. Barry Ferguson showed why he is the best midfielder in Scotland as he broke through to hammer a Ronald De Boer cross past Brownie. They tried to win the match, but we had enough left in our tank to work hard and stave them off to wind up with a 1-1 draw. The draw left them still in front of Celtic, with us firmly locked into 3rd place.
Why did I buy Christian Dailly? Because he was available- nah, just kidding. He was available from West Ham who were trying to get rid of him. The main reason I got him was because we could use his veteran leadership. This was a player who was skipper of Scotland- perfect to bring to our club. With both Kevin Twaddle and Billy McKinlay starting to show signs of aging rapidly this season, we really needed another leader to step in. Whether on the pitch or in the dressing room I was convinced that Dailly could help, and that made him worth the 1.7 Million and the large contract.
Dailly was right into the lineup as we travelled to Ibrox. We really played a lackluster match in losing to the 'Gers 1-0 on Ronald De Boer's 27th minute header. The Board let me know they were unhappy with our effort, indeed I was also very unhappy with our effort. I didn't mind losing, but I did mind going like lambs to the slaughter and that is how we played in this match. The only highlight was another strong match from Brownie- who was cementing his reputation as Scotland's top keeper.
Easter Road Park was our next match the day after Christmas and we are reeling a bit with injuries. Mark Kerr, Neil Scally (who was playing extremely well in defensive midfield role) and Kiegan Parker were all out with injury. I was forced to use Paul Ritchie as a rightback- with Craig McEwen suffering from a light nock and Steven Hammell also went out the day before the match with a bad ankle. Shortly into the match, we lost Kevin Twaddle as well (for a month to a bad knee)- and we played a rudderless first half. Hibs poured the pressure on while we struggled, but Brownie kept the sheet clean til halftime. Early in the second half it was MOM Grant Brebner who found space and rocketed a shot in to give them the lead. The goal seemed to wake us up and we answered as Steven Milne chipped past Dirk Heinen to even the match. On a Billy McKinlay corner, Alan Archibald outleaped two defenders and deflected it past Heinen to score the eventual match winning goal. Brownie was forced to survive a furious rally by Hibs, but when he pushed Brebner's last second blast around the post- we had held on for an undeserved 2-1 win.
Back at home against Dunfermline, I was hoping we would settle down and play a steadier match. Adding Christian Dailly seems to have helped our backline a lot- and really the club as he took over as captain (nobody would dispute that the captain of Scottish National side shouldn't be our captain- even though just arrived). With Martin Wood and Steven Milne paired up for the first time up front- Dunfermline found a combination their backline couldn't handle. Wood centered a pass for Milne and he headed past Marco Ruitenbeek for an early lead. Ross O'Donoghue showed his passing ability with a lofted ball that Milne half-volleyed for a winner and we were up 2-0 at the halfway mark in the first half. O'Donoghue picked off a rebound in extra time and he blasted it in to give us a 3-0 halftime lead. Dunfermline came out with little determination to make a game of it in the 2nd half and the entire half went quickly and quietly as we settled for the 3-0 margin.
After January 1st, we started seeing the club getting healthier again. They trickled back, but soon after we had Steven Nicholas, Kiegan Parker, Mark Kerr, etc... all back and ready to go. It was a pleasant dilemma to try and find playing time for all of them, but the kind of problem that managers want.
Pittodrie was always a tough place for us- Aberdeen seemed to really relish their chances to play us there. We took a little life out of the crowd when Stephen Pearson blistered a shot past Francis Javier Sanchez Broto in the opening moments of the match. We missed a chance to go up two goals later in the half when Mark Kerr shot wide of a wide open net. Midway through the 2nd half, Brownie earned a yellow card for apparently clipping Quino's foot in the area. He made up for the call by pushing Darren Young's penalty kick over the cross bar to keep the clean sheet. We clamped down on them after that point and settled for a tough 1-0 road win.
One encouraging sign since the arrival of Christian Dailly was our work on the defensive side of the ball. We weren't giving away good opportunities as much and were making Brownie's job easier. We demonstrated that again as we hosted Dundee United at Fir Park. We played a smothering defense that only allowed them 5 shots for the match, and all but one of those were at range and not close-in. That was good enough to allow Stephen Pearson's 25th minute penalty conversion to be the winning margin in a close 1-0 match. The penalty came about when David McCracken fouled Mark Kerr in the air on a corner.
In our 3rd round Scottish Cup match we hosted Division 1 Ross County at Fir Park. We were very inhospitable hosts as the 2nd line took advantage of playing time to make some good impressions. Steven Nicholas and Martin Wood scored on excellent chances and we had a 2-0 lead at the 12 minute mark. Martin Fotheringham was all over the midfield in the match and volleyed a winner for us to take a 3-0 lead at halftime. We were content to staunchly defend the net the rest of the way and John Connolly earned another clean sheet in the 3-0 win.
It was another trip to Celtic Park and surprisingly, I wasn't dreading it. We were playing really well and I was hopeful that this time we would give them a tough battle. The fans certainly got their money's worth at that one. They were screaming when Jamie Smith's early goal was waved off on an offside. Steven Milne helped silence them at 25 minutes when his header slipped past Robert Douglas to give us the lead. Celtic evened the match at 39 minutes when Shaun Maloney made a brilliant move on Ross O'Donoghue and slipped the ball past Brownie. They took the lead at 50 minutes when Mark Fotheringham boomed home a shot after Chris Sutton laid the ball off for him. It was funny, but I could sense our club shift into overdrive then- and our pressure and passing took control of the match. Billy McKinlay scored to even the match at 72 minutes- moments after Milne's 2nd goal of the match had been ruled off on an offside. Celtic responded and went ahead again as Paul Lambert scored his first of the season at 85 minutes. During many points of the season- this would have been the end for us- instead this time we got after them and Kiegan Parker knocked a volley past Douglas to allow us to salvage a 3-3 draw. If Brownie had played anywhere near his normal self- we would have won the match outright, but this was his poorest match since the other Celtic debacle. The draw was heartening, but we are certainly looking like we will be locked into a 3rd place finish this season.
Before we play a home and away set against Real Madrid, we had to face Hearts at Fir Park. It was a good defensive performance on our part as John Connolly provided strong work in backstopping the clean sheet. Unfortunately, we never got untracked on offense and Antti Niemi had an easier time than Connolly in keeping a clean sheet of his own in the scoreless draw. Because this was a midweek tilt, I rested most of the first line to have them fresh against Real Madrid. Rangers outdueled Celtic at Ibrox in a 1-0 win on Tore Andre Flo's goal that put them 3 points clear atop the SPL, with a match in hand on 2nd place Celtic.
I was worried heading into the home portion of our pair of matches against Real Madrid. Christian Dailly went out with a bad ankle the day before the match- which meant we lost both his leadership and solid play against a club when we desperately needed it. Sometimes if you can move a club from their comfort zone- good things happen. We started that way against Real Madrid when Kevin Twaddle's volley in the 3rd minute eluded Iker Casillas and suddenly we were ahead. Real had been in front of their other matches, so this was new to them. They responded with a strong attack and in the 30th minute Fernando Morientes outleaped Alan Archibald to head past Brownie. We caught them off guard again when Steven Nicholas scored on a loose ball to put us ahead at 35 minutes. They staged a furious attack to try and even the match at the start of the 2nd half, but we were the ones who capitalized on a defensive mistake when uncovered Steven Milne scored his 15th of the season at 62 minutes to put us up 3-1. Neil Scally, playing in his first Champs Cup match because he hadn't been eligible until now, set the tone defensively as he forced Spanish attackers off the ball repeatedly- until he
had to come out with a thigh strain that will keep him out a couple weeks. He did earn MOM honors and steady Billy McKinlay came on as we closed out the match with a defensive stand that kept them at 1 goal- and left us 3-1 winners. The win moved us a point behind Real in 2nd place in the group. Juventus, which beat Bayern 3-0 at home, is a point behind us in 3rd place.
Real Madrid was out to put us in our place when they hosted us as we started our second swing through against the clubs. Their 70,000 fans were roaring when Raul outleaped Richard Montgomery and deflected a Roberto Carlos cross
past Brownie at the 6 minute mark. It was almost 2-0, but Brownie knocked Ariel Ortega's blast over the net and then smothered a good chance by Fernando Morientes. The second half started the same way, but we remained stalwart in defending the net around Brownie- keeping them from increasing the lead while we tried to get some offense going. In the 57th minute, Steven Nicholas stunned the huge crowd with a curving 25 yard blast that sailed past Iker Casillas to even the match at 1-1. Real was all over us trying to regain the advantage, but Brownie was magnificent and kept their high powered attack off the board. We had one last golden chance, but Kiegan Parker missed high when he was in alone on Casillas, and we had to settle for the 1-1 draw. Bayern dumped Juventus at home by a 3-0 margin- returning the favor. Our next match at Juventus should tell the tale on where we stand in the Group.
There are highs and there are lows during a season and often you move quickly between the extremes. Such was the case when we travelled to
Tannadice Park to face Dundee United in the 4th Round of the Scottish Cup. We played a good match overall, with plenty of chances, but Paul Gallacher had all the answers today as he kept us off the scoreboard. They had taken the early lead when we left Eddie Annand unmarked and Gary Middleton slipped a pass through to him. Brownie almost had the shot, but after deflecting it- it trickled into the net. They only had a couple more chances after that goal, but the goal was enough to broom us out of the Scottish Cup.
The day after that match was when we parted with Michael Craig. Michael had talent, but never really scored for us when he played and because of that hadn't been playing much. He wanted out- to play regularly- so I let Falkirk
complete their purchase for 1.5 Million.
We were right back at Tannadice Park for our League Cup Semifinal against Aberdeen. It was a hard fought match and they were trying to apply physical pressure on us from the start. That didn't exactly work, as we weren't intimidated and they earned four yellow cards during the course of the match. Still, they did a good job of keeping things clear around David Preece and he was playing well in net. At the 40 minute mark, Stephen Milne did a nice job of making room for himself and Billy McKinlay slipped a pass into him. Milne wheeled and sent it past Preece to give us the halftime lead. The second half was a bitter contest on the pitch, as the referee put his whistle away. Still, we held much of the flow of play and limited them to one last good chance in the closing moments. When Brownie knocked Scott Michie's shot over the net, that was the last chance as we finished out strongly to win 1-0 and would face Hearts in the League Cup Final.
A couple days after the Semifinal, another problem came to a head. I had heard rumors that Steven Nicholas wanted to move to a bigger club. He finally came to my office to discuss it- at least he came without his agent, I respected him more for that. We talked about his aspirations and I finally agreed to transfer list him- but not at his request. He promised me that he would give 110% when he played and I promised him if any club would meet my minimum transfer fee of 8 Million- then he could pursue that opportunity. It was clear that Arsenal had some interest, since their scout was around training the next day- along with Chelsea and Club Brugge's England scouts.
We further cemented our hold on 3rd place in the SPL as we played a strong match at Fir Park and defeated Kilmarnock by a 2-0 margin. Kiegan Parker struck in the first half and Martin Wood in the 2nd half as we won the match with mostly the 2nd line players starting- since our Juventus match was next and I wanted our regulars rested and ready for it. Meanwhile, the Rangers won again and Celtic lost a heartbreaking 4-3 road match to Dundee United.
What that means is Rangers are 10 points clear atop the SPL and it looks like the pre-ordained order of finish at that point should be Rangers-
Celtic- Us.
*chuckle* I don't worry too much about it- the boys needed this type of experience at the time anyway 
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