Take a look at these historical league tables (top four only) which show when Cowdenbeath FC has won the Scottish Second Division.
Scottish League Division Two 1913-14
1 Cowdenbeath P 22 pts 31
2 Albion Rovers P 22 pts 27
3 Dundee Hibernian P 22 pts 26
4 Dunfermline Ath P 22 pts 26
In those days promotion wasn’t automatic so Cowdenbeath were in Division Two the next year. Cowdenbeath were one of three teams on equal points at the top.
Scottish League Division Two 1914-15
1 Leith Athletic P 26 pts 37
2 St Bernards P 26 pts 37
3 Cowdenbeath P 26 pts 37
4 East Stirlingshire P 26 pts 31
A three-way play-off decided the league winners. Cowdenbeath defeated Leith Athletic at East End Park and St. Bernards at Easter Road to take the title.
Scottish League Division Two 1938-39
1 Cowdenbeath P 34 pts 60
2 Alloa Athletic P 34 pts 48
3 East Fife P 34 pts 48
4 Airdrieonians P 34 pts 47
Cowdenbeath’s only other Championship was in Div 3 in 2006. Their other promotions came as runners-up, through play-offs or as a result of another club’s financial problems leading to a readjustment in the leagues.
So does anyone spot something here?
Well, I notice that every time Cowdenbeath have been Champions of a Division 2 in Scotland the UK has been involved in a major (world) war the next September.
Now take a gander at the present position in the SFL Div 2 (as of 7/2/12) :-
1 Cowdenbeath P 20 pts 41
2 Arbroath P 20 pts 39
3 Stenhousemuir P 20 pts 31
4 Dumbarton P 19 pts 28
The church is no longer in use as a place of worship having been closed as such by the Church of Scotland in November 2010. The congregation merged with that of St Brycedale Church – no more than 50 yards away! – to become known as St Bryce Kirk. St Bryce is the patron saint of Kirkcaldy. (See here.) These two Burne Jones windows are towards the back of the building if you were entering from Kirk Wynd and are only two of many stained glass windows whose splendour cannot be fully experienced from the outside.
The above much more recent stained glass windows represent the flames of the fire which damaged the interior a good few years ago. These flank the main entrance from Kirk Wynd.
One slightly older window by Crear McCartney is on the immediate left wall (see left.)
None of the pews remain as the space inside has been cleared for community use.
It is possible to climb the tower. Don’t do it on a windy day (of which there are a quite a few in Kirkcaldy) as you are fairly exposed on the tower parapet.
Before the stairs/ladders which allow the climb we passed the impressive memorial – see below – to the members of the congregation who died in the World Wars. (The 1939-45 addition blends in well.)
I had to stitch three pictures to get the full panorama of the memorial as the space to step back was limited. The passageway to the stairs is on the left of this.
I have fond memories of this author’s 1972 novel The Patterns of Chaos which had some humorous aspects. The Survival Game is from four years later and unfortunately shows its age.
Two star kings are in dispute over whether or not to join those aligned with Earth in a federation. To resolve matters they agree to have their respective champions engage in a game of survival on the dangerous planet Avida. King Oontara chooses an Earthman, Colonel Bogaert, as his (unbeknowing) champion. His rival King Xzan has chosen a former resident of Avida as his. Meanwhile a Pretender to the throne of the emperor Kanizar has taken advantage of his absence to launch an attack against his capital planet. Kanizar’s wife and children escape and accidentally become Bogaert’s companions while they are trying to get to safety on Earth and stow away on the ship on which he is hi-jacked to Avida.
I suppose we are to take from the book’s title that the bigger game in which all the civilisations (I use the word loosely) in the novel are engaged is of survival but the treatment can not carry such a weight. Neither is the staleness of the premise the only problematic feature, the characterisation is uniformly minimal – not to say non-existent. There is an attempt at humour, of a sort, as Bogaert is sometimes referred to as ‘Colonel Bogey’.
The Survival Game is the sort of story where people from Earth are called Terrans and are infinitely resourceful and competent, effortlessly running rings around other inhabitants of the galaxy. In the past 35 years we have, thankfully, gone beyond that.
It’s just possible that this was a send-up of a style of writing around at the time, but if so I do not recall it and it does not read as pastiche. File it in ‘of its time’ and move on. Perhaps I should not go back to look at The Patterns of Chaos.
PS I noticed on Library Thing that The Survival Game has 4½ stars. Come on guys! You have to be kidding.
On Saturday we took a wee trip to South Queensferry really just for something to do but also to check out an antique shop we’d seen featured on the TV. (We didn’t buy anything in the end.)
Just by the jetty from where the boat trips to Inchcolm island set off there is this sculpture. The plaque mentions there is a large grey seal colony on the island.
South Queensferry is of course dominated by the two Forth Bridges but mainly by the original (rail) Forth Bridge. The trains seem to be every few minutes one way or the other. They look like toys against the Bridge’s sheer size. Here’s one coming off the bridge to the south. The photo captured the reflections in the water quite well.
The local shops etc make great play of the bridge connection. This is the Rail Bridge Bistro and Gift Shop.
I like the way the Rail Bridge motif is maintained on the fencing to the left front and also on the door handles on the entrance.
The sculpture of one of the bridge spans is to commemorate those who built the bridge.
This, I believe, contains the only commemoration to those who died in its construction, who are not enumerated individually anywhere.
It’s a dark molecular cloud about 500 light years away. It’s dark because the dust and molecular gas it contains absorb nearly all the visible light which would otherwise shine through it.
Using improved infrared technology astronomers can now see through this.
Speaking of The Troggs, this was the first of their singles that I bought. Almost the first single I ever bought, it being two or so years since the previous one.
Gary’s aim is to bring back to life some otherwise out of print books never before made available for e-readers.
Most of the projected releases are by authors known to him – and to me, it must be said. I’m particularly glad to see Angus McAllister appear on the list.
I don’t have an e-reader myself (I’m a bit of a Luddite; I prefer reading ink on paper, where it won’t be a calamity if you drop it in the bath) but if I had I would be buying these.
