SPFL Tier 3 Play-off, Semi-Final, First Leg, Ainslie Park, 03/05/22.

Calamity.

Shambles.

Disgrace.

Choose your own noun.

Whichever, this was a come-uppance that has been coming all season.

We weren’t the worse team in the first half; indeed we had several opportunities to put in good crosses, notably from Ross MacLean, but the delivery was never acceptable enough except when Conner Duthie put one over for Josh Oyinsan to head. Josh’s angle was slightly wrong and the ball just cleared the bar. That would have made it 1-1 and might have changed the game.

But our perennial ability to shoot ourselves in the foot manifested itself when George Stanger underhit a back-pass and Kieran Wright couldn’t prevent the forward getting past him to be presented with an open goal.

Their second was also an abject disaster, a corner somehow not being cleared and the ball going in off Gregor Buchanan. At that point any thought of winning this tie all but disappeared.

Mind you, if we had approached the start of the first half the way we did the second things might have been different. For the first twenty minutes we were all over them, creating space down the flanks and getting crosses in. It was two odd substitutions though with Kris Syvertsen who had looked as if he might create something and big Josh (who admittedly wasn’t at his best) being replaced by Kalvin Orsi and Callum Wilson. At this point Paul Paton was bossing the game from the base of midfield and it was his cross that was looped over the keeper from the edge of the box for our goal. Young Callum did his best, twisting and turning past defenders several times, but nobody was able to be calm enough to finish off his work.

Their third killed it. Another defensive mix-up and a reasonable save from Keiran Wright was followed by a failure to clear the ball which fell to a guy who couldn’t miss.

At 2-1 and with us on top there was the possibility of getting an equaliser but that goal knocked us back. 3-1 was always going to be a different prospect.

The final nail in the coffin with minutes to go – another short pass back latched on to by the home attack – just completed the humiliation.

The thought of watching the second leg was by then almost unbearable.

So; unless some sort of miracle happens on Saturday we now know where we’ll be playing next season; Tier 4.

Who knows where we’ll be the season after that?

The club is in deep trouble on and off the park. It’s its 150^th anniversary later this year. What a sorry state it’s in to greet that.

Profound change is required.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 30/4/22,

Too little too late.

Except for when we played East Fife this was our only home win in the league this season – and it came in the last regular game. Add to that that we have had only had three clean sheets all season and you can see where the problems lie.

Our team featured nine changes from last week’s starters – no doubt the manager trying to preserve players for the more important play-off games coming up.

We started brightly enough though I thought Clyde looked less than interested and in ten minutes Kristoffer Syvertsen executed a lovely turn in the box and shot past their keeper.

Thereafter we more or less dominated the half and ought to have scored when Ross Maclean had a one-on-one but he lost his footing just as he shot. Anothe rlovely move saw Kris Syvertsen set up by Gregg Wylde but his shot was either blocked by a defender or tipped over the bar by the keeper; it was hard to see which on the stream.

Then with half-time looming we lost centre-back Adam Hutchinson to a shoulder injury. No sub came on. Of course they came up the park and scored – albeit at the second attempt. Being a man short may have cost us that. Carsy came on as sub for the kick-off. Typical.

So far so like the last home game against Peterhead.

The second half was pretty much nothing but Conner Duthie and Josh Oyinsan on for the half looke dlively at times. It was due to Josh we got the winner. He rolled his defender on the halfway line and passed to Duthie who mishit his pass but Gregg Wylde got enough power to beat the keeper.

In the last seconds Josh took a sore one from former Son Kevin Nicoll who was immediately red-carded. What a ridiculous challenge to perpetrate in the last knockings of the season. I hope Josh will be fit to take part in the play-offs.

So a win at last. But is it enough to instil confidence for Tuesday night?

For myself, the nerves are shredded already.

SPFL Tier 3, Recreation Park*, 2/4/22.

What a shock.

We scored. Our first in almost five games.

We scored three.

We won! (For the first time in seven games.) It’s almost certainly too late though.

I “watched” the second half on the BBC Scotland results show. It was 0-0 for so long. All the while Peterhead were in control in their game so our wnning was an absolute must. Then Alloa scored in about 82 minutes. Game over, I thought.

Imagine my surprise when it came up about three minutes later that we’d scored a penalty. Even more so when it was Conner Duthie who scored it. Carsy has been our penalty taker all season. It seems he’d been subbed for Eoghan Stokes though.

Imagine my even greater surprise when Duthie scored again two minutes after that.

However, I just knew they’d equalise. It’s what we do. Not much surprise when it was a pen. Our record of giving them away this season is beyond a joke. 90^th minute it said. At that point I’d have taken a draw even though it was useless to us.

Utter disbelief ensued when I saw Alloa 2-3 Dum on the left upper screen graphic. Then it came up on the videoprinter, scorer Kristoffer Syvertsen. Amazing.

So no goals for over 80 minutes then five in the last ten or so.

It seems from Pie and Bovril we looked like we were playing for a draw for most of the game. Maybe we should try attacking from the start.

Peterhead at home next week. Lose that and it’s ninth at best for us. We have the top two away in the two games following that. Nul points from them I should think.

This game was notable in another way. It’s the first time the Sons have been refereed by a woman, Lorraine Watson to be precise.

*Indodrill Stadium only if you must.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 18/12/21,

I’m seriously depressed now.

That’s us won 1, drawn 3 and lost 5 at home this season. Just dreadful. Compare that with won 4, lost 5 away from home, though.

But it’s individual errors that are costing us for the most part.

We started slowly but came into it and managed to score from our first ‘proper’ (ie floated as opposed to driven in at knee height) corner, Andy Geggan heading in at the back post. (Not that I actually saw it; the fog was so bad that the Pixellot camera on the stream coudn’t follow the ball.)

We couldn’t hold on to it, though. An inexplicable failure to make any challenges in midfield left Sam Muir exposed down our left and the guy ran on to put it under Sam Ramsbottom.

Amazingly we didn’t fall out of it at once. instead a great run by Sam Muir saw his cross missed by everybody except Conner Duthie at the back post (near post to the camera’s view.) Again I didn’t see it but it seems his finish was composed.

Could we hold on?

No.

Sam Ramsbottom’s mistake this time, failing to control a back pass and making a foul for the penalty or so the commentary said. Sam saved it but the rebound fell to the taker. 2-2.

Our best hope at half-time was probably for a postponement as the visibility was even worse in the second half due to the sun going down. The floodlight glare on the stream all but obliterated the view at either end of the pitch. But the ref played on. And the Pixellot camera trained itself more or less consistently on the middle of the pitch – except when the nearside ballboy was juggling with a spare ball.

Andy Geggan again had the ball in the net from a Joe McKee free-kick but the assistant’s flag had gone up. How he managed to make out it was offside in the gloom goodness only knows.

That might have made a difference but it was all over when Peterhead scored after a corner. Again I didn’t see the goal and had to rely on the stream’s commentary – apparently the tallest guy on the pitch had been left unmarked.

That was game over, we don’t come back from deficits.

We’re seriously in trouble now.

The annoying thing is we can score. But we can’t defend. Not a recipe for success.

Queen’s Park away on Boxing Day. We’ve lost 3-0 to them twice already.

Not a happy Christmas then.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 11/12/21.

This all started quite well. We had the better of the first part of the game, even if Montrose looked tidy on the ball they didn’t threaten our goal. Eoghan Stokes put a header against the post from a narrow angle, Conner Duthie latched onto an exquisite pass from Andy Geggan, rounded the keeper and slotted it. The retreating defender could only put it in the net. Callum Wilson hit the bar from a corner.

Then the roof fell in. Paddy Boyle misjudged the bounce of the ball and his attempt to recover caught their attacker who tumbled to the ground. Penalty. No question. Then two minutes later they pulled our defence out of shape and had a man over on the left. Goal. Eoghan Stokes was through one on one just before half-time but the keeper narrowed the angle well and saved with his legs.

Again at the start of the second half we looked as if we might get back into it but the third goal killed it. Failure to challenge properly allowed the attacker to manœuvre the ball into a striking position. Game over.

It’s especially disappointing as we looked bright enough going forward when we passed the ball. We can only hope that a Ryan McGeever return might improve our defence (and provide an extra attacking threat on set pieces.)

Down to second bottom. Next Saturday’s game against Peterhead looks like a six pointer even this early. Lose it and I reckon we’re stuffed.

Scottish Cup, Third Round, The Rock, 27/11/21.

It took us a while but we won it in the end.

We were pretty comfortable first half. Sauchie had a few corners but never really troubled Sam Ramsbottom in our goal. Their one clear opportuniyty was blazed over the bar. Not that we had many on target ourselves but we did score a very good goal, Carlo Pignatiello slotting it under the keeper after an exchange of passes between Conner Duthie and himself.

Second half Sauchie came into it a bit more. But their goal was a joke. Their forwards had been falling over easily all game and one finally did it in the box. It was never a penalty. But of course they put it in and that gave them impetus.

Neverthless we continued to create openings, frustrated by a few poor crosses from Edin Lynch and other balls just out of reach plus an away keeper in inspired form.

About five minutes to go and sub Ryan Schiavone poked a cross over the line but neither the ref nor lino gave it. A replay after that would have been sore to take but we worked another opnening and the ball broke to Joe McKee who buried it. In the final minute of added time we got another, a Conner Duthie shot apparently spilled by the keeepr with Schiavone on hand to net the rebound. I say apparently because the live stream had stayed focused on Duthie not the ball. I only had the commentary and subsequent kick-off to indicate we’d sealed it.

A potential banana skin avoided then.

On Monday we’ll find out who we’ve got in the next round.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock,* 25/9/21.

This was a strange, scrappy game. I thought we played too many long balls first half, which their defence tended to gobble up. Alloa on the other hand looked more purposeful going forward without really threatening at all, though Sam Ramsbottam had to make a save from a well hit effort. It all livened up just before half-time. Conner Duthie scuffed an effort straight at the keeper and in Alloa’s next attack Gregor Buchanan’s back headed clearance fell to one of theirs on the edge of the box and it was despatched behind Ramsbottam.

We’re quite easy on the eye going forward, young Callum Wilson looking very assured in possession. They tended to sit back and soak up our pressure though, and I lost count of the times they broke up play with niggly fouls so we didn’t really create many chances but Gregor Buchanan miscued a header from a set piece when he would usually score.

The equaliser came from a set piece, Callum Wilson’s corner well met by Paddy Boyle and put away.

There were chances at both ends after that, Sam Ramsbottam got down well to thwart Niang after his mazy run and sub Ross MacLean had two efforts which weren’t clinical enough – one screwed horribly over the bar.

An opportunity for three points not taken, then. However at half-time I’d have taken the draw.

On this evidence Callum Wilson is definitely a talent and Edin Lynch is evolving into a fine attacking force from right back.

First quarter ends next Saturday with ua away at Peterhead. More of a chance to assess where we are after that.

*I’m not calling it the Moreroom.com Stadium.

SPFL Tier 3, The Rock, 27/4/21.

Who would be a football fan?

This was excruciating.

We had a couple of bright moments in the first half but their keeper was never really troubled by them. And we had Sam Ramsbottom to thank for keeping it level with a very good save from a header from a corner.

The second half was totally forgettable till the last two minutes. Over the piece it’s up there with so many others this season as being the worst football match I’ve ever seen. Misplaced passes, miscontrols – I know the pitch is bumpy and needs a lot of rain to improve it but still.

We created nothing.

The subs didn’t help as we ended up with almost no midfield and five or six front men. This felt like a recipe for Forfar breaking upfield to score and indeed they could have tested Ramsbottom a few times but their final touch was missing.

It was easy to see why both teams were in trouble at the bottom of the table.

The game had 0-0 written all over it and was a dispiriting watch.

Ninety seconds of the ninety minutes were left when P J Crossan neatly got past his full back and crossed the ball. It ran behind a despairing lunge by a defender and fell to fellow-sub Conner Duthie who buried it. This was totally at odds with the rest of the game. A “get out of jail free” card.

The agony is now prolonged to Saturday and Tuesday.*

Why do they do it to us?

Why do we fans do it to ourselves?

*(Covid permitting, Clyde’s postponement tonight for one of their squad having a positive test puts the cat among the pigeons.