shannon2007

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> We're going up, believe it!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I dont think anyone ever really doubted it

But can you stay up?

BarryLFC

Memo to board

As you'll have noticed we won the league with four games to spare, out boozing, so can't do a report, will bring you up to speed after the first quarter of next season. Quite excited actually.

Regards,

Iain

BarryLFC

Ayr United Football Club

Squad Assessment 2004-2005

Reserve Squad:

Goalkeepers:

Hogarth, Myles Stirling Albion Bosman 4th choice keeper, brought in early in the close season as an insurance policy.

Soutar, Derek Dundee Free Future starter, spending a year in the reserves for experience.

Creer, Allan Livingston Free Seventeen year old with ability. We'll see how he develops.

Defenders:

Burgess, Robert Ayr United Already at club. Young defender was not ready for First Division football last year, and is certainly not ready to play in the SPL this. Possibly could go out on loan.

Lyle, Willie Ayr United Already at club. Started in the right back role last season, but will understudy this.

Dunlop, Mick Ayr United Already at club. Another who was a first-team squad member last season, only to find himself on the reserve roster this. Still young enough to eventually break through.

Dorado, Emmanuel Livingston Bosman Brought in as backup, and helps the kids by playing with the reserves

Midfielders:

McGrady, Stuart Ayr United Already at club. Played OK in his chances last term, but nowhere near ready to play in the first team this year.

Millen, Andy Clyde Bosman Brought in as a player/coach, but will primarily fill the latter role at age 40.

Rankin, John Ross County Season-long loan Renewed loan deal that proved so successful last season. Will start in the reserves but may move up to the top team as time goes on. The club is looking to find the money to make this a permanent deal.

Makel, Lee Livingston Bosman Squad member who can deputise in central midfield in times of emergency.

Bowey, Steve Queen of the South Bosman Tough midfielder who will again play a squad-member role, and work with the youths.

Forwards:

Brighton, Tom Peterhead £110,000 Young striker brought in with an eye on the future, comes with a good pedigree having come through the Rangers youth system.

Cameron, Martin Gretna Bosman Older head recruited in case of a striking emergency emerging during the season. A luxury I wouldn't spend money on if I wasn't absolutely determined to stay up.

Kean, Stewart Ayr United Already at club. A kid we expect to break through in the next two seasons, or never. Time will tell.

Williams, Alex Ayr United Already at club. Scored 11 goals last season after replacing the now-departed Stephen Whalen in the team in the second half of last season and should be nexdt to break into the top team.

Conway, Craig Ayr United Already at club. One of many young strikers at the club with a chance to make it. May have to leave this club first.

McColl, Mark Ayr United Already at club. I want to see Mark force me to play him. He's got the ability, but we need to see the application next.

Ferguson, Andrew Ayr United Already at club. Another who has a chance to be a first team regular in this division eventually. It's up to him to make it happen.

BarryLFC

Ayr United Football Club

Squad Assessment 2004-2005

First Team Squad:

Goalkeepers:

Arendse, André Sundowns Free
South African National Team starter, will play for us for one year, hopefully helping to develop the young goalkeeping talent in the squad.

Nelson, Craig St. Johnstone Bosman
Always nice to bring back a crowd favourite, and Craig is backup to André this season, unless the South African loses his form.

Defenders:

Onopko, Victor Alania Vladikavkaz Bosman
The veteran Russian international has over 100 caps for his country, and will be club captain this season.

Deloumeaux, Eric Aberdeen Bosman
Eric will start at right back this season, bringing SPL experience to the defence.

Staunton, Steve Coventry Bosman
Steve will be our starting left back, and will hopefully put his experience to good use in that role.

Campbell, Mark Ayr United Already at club.
Mark will continue in the centre of defence. We are optimistic of an injury-free season for him.

Smyth, Marc Ayr United Already at club.
Marc will likely be used in the midfield initially this season. Now a regular in the Scotland under 21 squad.

Midfielders:

Wiss, Jarkko Hibs Bosman
Jarkko will provide cover across the midfield and at full back in an emergency.

Nerlinger, Christian Rangers Free
Christian will start on the left hand side. We expect big things from him, despite his failure at Rangers.

Stewart, Michael Manchester United Season-long loan.
Michael comes in on a season-long loan from United looking to show he is ready to play for their first team. We hope he does.

Ramsay, Dougie Ayr United Already at club.
Dougie will provide backup in the middle and on the right hand side of midfield. Has played at this level in his Motherwell days.

Campbell, Darren Reading £250,000
Teenage Scottish winger will be looking to break into the team quickly after his move from the English First Division.

Tiffert, Christian VfB Stuttgart Season-long loan.
Tiffert is our starting right winger, but time will tell if he is mature enough for the role.

Chaplain, Scott Ayr United Already at club.
Scott is now being selected for the Scotland under 21 squad, and will have a role to play in this campaign.

Ferguson, Steve Ayr United Already at club.
Steve was ever-present last season, and will look to extend that streak this time around. Will face stiff competition for his place though.

Forwards:

Burns, Alex Motherwell Bosman
Alex will look to break into the team, but will find it tougher given the quality of strikers in the squad.

De Bilde, Gilles Anderlecht Bosman
Gilles has all the quality you could hope for. If he can deliver goals we'll all be happy.

Ganz, Maurizio Ancona Free
After a successful trial Maurizio was signed to a 1-year deal. If he can chip in with a handy number of goals we'll have got our money's worth.

Mihalcea, Adrian Genoa Free
Adrian was my most prized acquisition of the off-season. A regular in the full Romanian side, and at 28 has experience, including three years in Italian football. Will be a star in this league.

Portillo, Javier Real Madrid Season-long loan.
I had to pull strings with contacts at Madrid to secure this deal, but Javier is arguably the best striker in this divison.

BarryLFC

Ayr United Football Club

Season 2004/2005

First Quarter

Manager's report

We've already gone over the playing staff, so I'll move swiftly on to the matches now.

The Bell's Cup:

We are not eligible for this competition this season.

CIS Insurance Cup:

Our second round game saw Brechin comprehensively dealt with by three goals to one at Glebe Park, but in the third round we came a cropper at Somerset, going down 1-0 to Dundee United on a late Charlie Miller goal.

Tennent's Scottish Cup:

Our participation in this competition has not yet commenced.

Bank of Scotland Scottish Premierleague:

We have played eleven games, and despite starting with a 2-3-1 record, defeats in our last five games have seen us tumble to a dreadful eleventh place in the league, two points ahead of Dunfermline, who gained their only win of the season so far when we visited East End Park. It's not pretty viewing, and it's clear our talented international players have not performed to their capablities, with particular pressure now on the goalkeeper to salvage his shattered reputation.

Statistics:

Adrian Mihalcea is the team's top scorer with four goals in all competitions, followed by Javier Portillo with three, two of which came in the League Cup win at Brechin. Alex Burns has two, whilst Scott Chaplain, Gilles De Bilde, Eric Deloumeaux, Mauizio Ganz, Steve Staunton and Michael Stewart have a single goal each. In my view none of our players have performed well enough or well often enough.

Assessment:

We're in serious danger of being dragged into a relegation battle if we don't right the ship soon. This is my responsibility and I take it upon myself to sort it out. Arendse will sit out the next few games to see if Nelson can establish himself in his place, but we are also hamstrung by injuries to Campbell and Mihalcea, who both appear somewhat fragile.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts 1st Rangers 11 9 1 1 26 3 +23 28 2nd Celtic 11 5 5 1 18 5 +13 20 3rd Dundee 11 6 2 3 19 17 +2 20 4th Dundee Utd 11 5 2 4 15 16 -1 17 5th Hibs 10 4 3 3 11 12 -1 15 6th Aberdeen 10 4 2 4 13 13 0 14 7th Livingston 11 4 1 6 16 18 -2 13 8th Hearts 11 3 4 4 13 16 -3 13 9th Partick 11 2 5 4 11 16 -5 11 10th Kilmarnock 11 3 2 6 10 17 -7 1111th Ayr 11 2 3 6 12 20 -8 912th Dunfermline 11 1 4 6 10 21 -11 7</pre>

BarryLFC

Ayr United Football Club

Season 2004/2005

Second Quarter

Manager's report

I suppose they're not really quarters, but this is my account of our season between game 12 and 22 of the SPL season:

Tennent's Scottish Cup:

Our Third Round game saw us overcome Second Division Falkirk at Somerset by a first minute Christian Nerlinger goal to nil. We were the last team out of the hat in the Fourth Round draw and face a daunting trip to Celtic Park.

Bank of Scotland Scottish Premierleague:

It seems unlikely given the upbeat feeling at Somerset, but we've lost six league games in this spell, the same as in the first quarter, and both parts of the season have ended with 5-0 defeats at the hands of Celtic. This quarter also saw a 5-1 loss to Rangers and an unlucky 2-1 reverse in the Ayrshire derby. Still we posted four victories and moved off the foot of the table, though the board are rightly concerned.

Statistics:

Adrian Mihalcea remains the team's top scorer with eleven goals , followed by Javier Portillo with seven. Scott Chaplain has three, as does Jarkko Wiss who has emerged as something of a free kick specialist in recent weeks. We made two acquisitions in the transfer window, Celtic youngster Anton Eadie signing for £20,000 and KR Reykjavik defender Jökull I ElÃ*sabetarson joining under freedom of contract.

Assessment:

Craig Nelson has established himself as #1 for now, and if the board grant me grace to the end of the season we will stay in this division.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts 1st Rangers 22 18 2 2 56 11 +45 56 2nd Celtic 22 12 6 4 46 18 +28 42 3rd Hibs 22 10 6 6 32 29 +3 36 4th Aberdeen 22 9 5 8 28 24 +4 32 5th Partick 22 8 6 8 28 30 -2 30 6th Dundee Utd 22 8 5 9 32 42 -10 29 7th Hearts 22 7 6 9 26 36 -10 27 8th Dundee 22 8 3 11 29 43 -14 27 9th Kilmarnock 22 8 2 12 22 31 -9 26 10th Dunfermline 22 6 5 11 31 39 -8 2311th Ayr 22 6 4 12 29 45 -16 2212th Livingston 22 5 4 13 34 45 -11 19</pre>

retired_ceb_33

Sounds like you aint had much luck so far in the top league.good stuff so far hope you can turn things around in the second half of the season . :thup:

BarryLFC

Ayr United Football Club

Season 2004/2005

Third Quarter

Manager's report

Here follows the account of Isildur, son of the King, or me, depending which version you have:

Tennent's Scottish Cup:

The Fourth Round was as far as we progressed in this competition, but we did take Celtic to a replay with a 1-1 draw at Parkhead, and only went down 1-0 at Somerset in the second game. A creditable performance, perhaps, but it still led to elimination. The competition is now past the semi final stage where Celtic beat Morton and Dundee United eliminated Rangers after extra time.

Bank of Scotland Scottish Premierleague:

We have now reached the league split, and despite having sat bottom for most of the last 10 or 11 games, we are now 11th, having overhauled Dundee with a win at Dens on matchday 32 and then producing a shock late win at Parkhead over Celtic courtesy of Gilles de Bilde after Larsson had cancelled out Adrian Mihalcea's penalty. We now face games against Dundee, Dunfermline, Livingston, Dundee United and Hearts as we seek to preserve our Premier League status. I have little doubt we will be relying more on Dundee dropping points than on picking them up ourselves over the closing six fixtures.

Statistics:

Adrian Mihalcea is still out in front in the goalscoring stakes with 19 to Portillo's 10 and de Bilde's 9. Scott Chaplain, who has four goals, and Mihalcea are the pick of our performers, and will be the leading contenders when player of the year honours are handed out.

Assessment:

Three wins in our last three games, including the vital game at Dens and the match with Celtic, have lifted us off the foot of the table, and we are determined not to sink there again this season.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag G.D. Pts 1st C Rangers 33 24 5 4 77 19 +58 77 2nd Celtic 33 16 8 9 61 31 +30 56 3rd Aberdeen 33 15 7 11 45 32 +13 52 4th Kilmarnock 33 16 4 13 44 41 +3 52 5th Hibs 33 13 8 12 51 52 -1 47 6th Partick 33 12 9 12 44 47 -3 45 ----------------------------------------------------7th Hearts 33 11 9 13 36 53 -17 42 8th Dundee Utd 33 11 8 14 46 59 -13 41 9th Livingston 33 11 5 17 60 67 -7 38 10th Dunfermline 33 9 9 15 44 53 -9 3611th Ayr 33 10 5 18 52 62 -10 35================================================ ====12th Dundee 33 9 5 19 37 81 -44 32</pre>

BarryLFC

Dear Board,

See, I told you we could stay up!

See you next season,

Iain

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">.....11th Ayr 38 12 6 20 55 67 -12 3912th Dundee 38 9 7 22 38 89 -51 34</pre>

BarryLFC

BBC Scotland interview, close season

Chick Young: So, here I am, where I am, which is here, in Ayr, at Somerset Park, to meet Mr Iain Bartholomew, manager of SPL side Ayr United who play here at Somerset Park in Ayr. Iain, you almost got relegated last season despite fielding a number of international players, do you feel you made mistakes when you brought them in.

IB: Look Chick, first of all, nice to meet you, how are you doing? Second of all we're still an SPL club, we stayed up, that was our target, and we achieved it, so no I didn't make a mistake bringing these players in.

CY: But most have since departed?

IB: True, most were on one-year deals which have not been renewed, but look where they are now. Onopko is at Hibs, so is Ganz, Nerlinger is at Dundee, Staunton at Cowdenbeath. These guys have stuck around. Arendse would have too, but he couldn't get a new work permit.

CY: Now though you have a primarily Scottish first team squad?

IB: It so happens that the best players available were Scottish. Guys like de Bilde, Mihalcea, Deloumeaux and ElÃ*sabetarson will still play a big part in my plans.

CY: You've taken a few players from Hibs, do you feel preying on a competitor like this bring up moral questions?

IB: Yes, I do, however my first priority is the good of Ayr United, and signing guys like Riordan, Brown, Brebner and Murray for the prices we paid was too good an opportunity to move us on to the next level to refuse.

CY: You also have a few lads who have failed to make the grade at the Old Firm clubs.

IB: I'd say it's harsh to say 'failed to make the grade'. Craig Beattie could well have made the breakthrough eventually, but his contract expired and Celtic weren't looking like renewing it quickly enough to suit him so we stepped in. Jamie Smith has the chance to be a top top player, and Ross Wallace is a guy I never expected them to release, he has ability. Rangers weren't keen to lose MacLean, but I was desperate to sign him. Unfortunately now he's injured imself in training...

CY: Is it a bad injury?

IB: Sadly, yeah. He's torn his medial ligaments in his left knee, he could miss the whole season.

CY: That must be devastating for him?

IB: Yeah, he could've made this a career season, but he'll be young enough when he recovers to build it up again.

CY:You've made other signings aswell.

IB: Yeah, we've brought John Rankin in for £170,000 from Ross County on a Bosman, and other free transfers and nominal sums went on Darryl Duffy from Spartans, Warren Cummings, Craig Burley and Lee Mair from Dundee and Eoin Jess, but that's another story.

CY: Let me get that one cleared up: you signed him, but he retired?

IB: Yeah, he signed a pre-contract agreement, but when the time came to join us he decided that he'd rather just quit than play for us. He's perfectly entitled to do that, but we were all disappointed.

CY: Do you think you'll bring anyone else in, or are you done now?

IB: Excepting Mäkelä?

CY: Almost forgot that! Some coup, I believe you beat off interest from Celtic for this kid?

IB: Yeah, he's at HJK in Helsinki now, he's 22 and has three caps. Celtic actually offered him a contract, but he opted to join us, and we're thrilled. He could be something like a phenomenon here.

CY: I look forward to seeing him on the pitch. All the best for the new season. Cheers.

IB: Cheers Chick.